CHANDIGARH: The Haryana Police is likely to summon two senior Punjab Police officials for questioning over their alleged role in arranging a "fabricated" forensic report in connection with a controversial video linked to Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann.
The Gurugram police have reportedly obtained CCTV footage of the officials visiting a five-star hotel in Gurugram, allegedly to arrange the "fabricated" report. They have also checked the entry register of the hotel, where the police officials stayed.
The CCTV footage from June 16 reportedly shows five people, including complainant Jaspreet Jassi, meeting at Hotel Crowne Plaza in Gurugram. The meeting is claimed to have involved senior Punjab Police officials and was allegedly held to influence the probe into the viral video. Meanwhile, WhatsApp chats have also surfaced, allegedly showing conversations between a police officer about editing the forensic report.
However, the authenticity of these chats has not been independently verified.
Sources said that if concrete evidence is found against these Punjab Police officials, they could be arrested.
A police officer said the presence of the Punjab police personnel is not merely a coincidence, but could be part of a deeper conspiracy.
"These two officers from Punjab will soon be summoned formally to join the investigation. We want to clarify the purpose of their visit to the hotel and determine whether they have any connection to the accused arrested in the case. A decision on naming them as co-accused in the case will be taken based on the responses and the evidence obtained during their questioning. If concrete evidence is found against them, they could be arrested," he said.
The complainant in the case, Jaspreet alias Jassi a resident of Sirsa in Haryana, has been moved to a safe house, where senior Haryana police officials are questioning him. According to the FIR registered in Gurugram, Jaspreet has alleged that he was pressured, threatened and coerced into getting forensic reports related to the video with a predetermined conclusion that it was created and manipulated using artificial intelligence.
In his complaint, Jaspreet, who is associated with digital forensics, cyber investigation and electronic evidence analysis, claimed that after reviewing the material provided to him, he told them that the quality, nature and source of the video material were insufficient to provide a reliable opinion.
Meanwhile, a court in Gurugram has sent the two arrested accused, Arun Mehandru and Ankit, to eight-day police custody.
During the interrogation of the two, the police will try to ascertain which Punjab Police officials communicated with them and where and how the report was prepared, said sources.
They will also be asked where they obtained the printouts from, the lab's email ID, the use of stamps and other relevant information. Efforts will be made to ascertain whether anyone else was involved in the preparation of this report, said sources.
A political storm has erupted in Punjab after a video allegedly featuring CM Mann surfaced, triggering the Akal Takht (Highest Temporal Seat of Sikhs) to declare him as one who has offended the Guru (Guru Dokhi) and anti-community (Panth Virodhi).
Mann rejected the video, saying it was "false propaganda" aimed at defaming him.
The Punjab AAP has also claimed that forensic tests by two labs showed that the man in the video was not the CM.
