Big Twist In Bhagwant Mann Viral Video Row: Who Is Jagman Samra? AAP REVEALS Identity Of Man Holding Punjab CM's Mask

Punjab: In a big twist in the Bhagwant Mann viral video controversy, the Aam Aadmi Party on Thursday shared a clip on its X account, showing a man sitting inside a car with a mask in his hand that looks identical to Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann.

The party has alleged that the person in the video made Mann's "fake" video. The party claimed that this is a conspiracy to defame him.

Mann also chaired a press conference and said Jagman Samra is the person carrying the mask in the video and that he had also made the mask of party chief Arvind Kejriwal.

In a press conference chaired by Mann, he questioned, "Where did you get the mask made?... We have the pic and video of Jagman Samra, who is the main blackmailer carrying the mask... This person has also made the mask of Arvind Kejriwal..." According to Mann, Samra is currently in Canada, while he himself has not visited the country since 2016, suggesting that the resemblance may have been used to create misleading content.

Slamming the opposition, he said that they had failed to challenge his government politically and were therefore resorting to misinformation campaigns to damage his public image.

“They cannot compete with us politically because they have been reduced to zero at the grassroots level. That is why efforts are being made every day to defame me religiously,” he said.

Maintaining that the viral video did not feature him, Mann invited authorities to subject the footage to any form of examination or forensic scrutiny.

BJP demands action

Earlier on Wednesday, the BJP demanded the Punjab CM's arrest following allegations that top Punjab Police officials paid Rs 10 lakh for a fake forensic report to declare an “objectionable” viral video allegedly showing the desecration of Sikh Gurus' photos and linked to the CM as manipulated.

This comes days after the Akal Takht, the highest temporal and spiritual seat of authority in Sikhism, took action against Mann over the controversy, referring to a video that allegedly showed him "disrespecting the Sikh Gurus". The Akal Takht had last week punished Mann by declaring him "anti-Sikh" over the video.