Punjab journalist approaches HC over police summons after AAP’s ‘identical’ complaints

A journalist from Bathinda, Rattandeep Singh Dhaliwal, has approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court after several police complaints were filed against him by AAP MLAs, Bar and Bench reported.

During a recent podcast, Dhaliwal claimed that approximately 32 current MLAs may not receive party tickets for Punjab’s upcoming state assembly elections. This prompted several legislators to file complaints with the police, resulting in official notices being served to the journalist.

Justice Rohit Kapoor scheduled the case for a Wednesday hearing, indicating that the court intended to review the podcast content before issuing any directions. Through his petition, Dhaliwal sought to have the police proceedings against him set aside.

The journalist contended that rather than issuing a rebuttal or denial in response to his broadcast, the party directed its legislators to lodge complaints against him. His petition, according to Bar and Bench, pointed out that the complaints appeared to follow a pre-drafted template where MLAs only needed to fill in their personal details, while the main text was identical across all filings and contained inflated allegations – including claims that his video had triggered hostility and public unrest across Punjab – which he argued were both factually incorrect and legally unsustainable.

As a consequence of these complaints, Dhaliwal received police notices from Patiala, Amritsar, Bathinda, and Ferozepur, summoning him. He further alleged that officers conducted a search of his home even after he had volunteered to cooperate with the investigation, characterising the raids as an act of intimidation rather than a genuine investigative measure.

The petition also argued that Dhaliwal’s case was not an isolated incident, asserting that Punjab had a well-documented pattern of misusing criminal law as a tool against members of the press.

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