Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Friday alleged that he was harassed by the Customs Department at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport in Delhi for nearly two hours after returning from Paris. He linked the incident to the Aam Aadmi Party’s demand for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar.Mann alleged that the action was intended as retaliation for AAP’s criticism of the CEC. Referring to Manish Kumar, a senior Customs official whom he described as the brother of Gyanesh Kumar, Mann said officials cited “pressure from above” before imposing a Rs 50,000 penalty. “There was nothing objectionable in my belongings,” he said.The controversy stems from Mann’s return from Paris earlier this week. According to reports, Customs officials inspected the baggage of the CM and his wife Gurpreet Kaur, and imposed a penalty of Rs 50,000. AAP alleged that Mann was made to wait for over two hours at the airport before being allowed to leave. The incident has triggered a row between AAP and the BJP, with the Punjab ruling party alleging that Central agencies and officials were being used to target its leadership. BJP’s social media accounts have claimed that designer shoes, a belt and other expensive accessories were found in the luggage.Speaking in the Vidhan Sabha, Mann said as Punjab CM, he gets several proposals from global business houses for foreign investment in the state. “It was in this context that I had sought permission to go to France. They denied permission and I had to move a court. They retaliated by detaining me at the airport for two hours. I have been questioning the concentration of decision-making powers with the CEC and his unwillingness to consult the two other Election Commissioners. I have been saying that the BJP wants to cut votes of those not voting for them and are not even making votes of youth. Manish Kumar, the head of Customs Department at Delhi Airport, is the brother of the CEC. Targeting me there was an act of retaliation,” he said.Outside the House, reacting to Home Minister Amit Shah’s assertion that the National Democratic Alliance would form the government in Punjab, Mann said the decision rested with the people of the state. “Shah cannot decide who will form the government. It is the three crore Punjabis who will decide,” he said.On the BJP’s claim that it could dismantle the illicit drug trade in Punjab within two years of coming to power, Mann referred to the tenure of the Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP government from 2007 to 2017. He said the biggest drug cartels had flourished in Punjab during that period. “Why did they not speak up about the drug cartels then,” he asked.The exchange comes amid a political confrontation over Punjab’s drug problem and the killing of anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota in Mansa. The BJP has accused the AAP government of failing to curb drug trafficking, while the state government has handed over the probe into Jhota’s killing to the CBI.On the Congress walkout during the Assembly proceedings, Mann said the party should participate in discussions instead of disrupting proceedings. “The Congress only knows how to make noise. First, they say the session is not convened, and then they do not attend it. They should participate in the discussion,” he said.