AAP Govt anti-Dalit, protects perpetrators of atrocities: Vijay Sampla
Babushahi Bureau
Chandigarh, October 13, 2025:Senior BJP leader and former Union Minister Vijay Sampla launched a scathing attack on the Bhagwant Mann-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab, accusing it of betraying the Dalit community and shielding those involved in atrocities against Dalits.
Sampla, who also served as Chairman of the National Commission for Scheduled Castes, said the AAP government “plays politics in the name of Dalits” but in reality “protects their oppressors and suppresses their rights.”
He cited several incidents, including the case of AAP MLA Manjinder Singh Lalpura, who was convicted in an assault case involving a Dalit woman but has neither been expelled from the party nor disqualified from the Assembly, continuing to enjoy privileges even in jail.
The BJP leader further alleged that Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann insulted a Dalit MLA during the Punjab Assembly session in March 2024 and that AAP ministers have made casteist remarks in public forums.
Sampla said that AAP had broken its pre-election promise to appoint a Dalit Deputy Chief Minister, adding that none of AAP’s 13 Rajya Sabha MPs—including seven from Punjab—belong to the Dalit community, despite Punjab having the highest Dalit population in the country.
He also condemned the government for withholding post-matric scholarship funds, which disrupted the education of Dalit students, and for failing to provide justice in cases such as the Majitha spurious liquor tragedy, where a majority of victims were from the Mazhabi Sikh community.
Sampla accused the AAP regime of remaining silent on vandalism of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar’s statues and of halting ₹25 crore sanctioned for the Guru Ravidas Bani Study Centre, calling it “a deliberate insult to Dalit icons.”
Referring to an incident in which the son of an AAP leader allegedly assaulted a Dalit youth, Sampla said the police failed to register a case and pressured the victim to compromise.
“This government harbors an anti-Dalit mindset and is actively trying to silence their voice. AAP has betrayed Dalits, denied them justice, and disrespected their leaders,” Sampla said.