Chandigarh

A day after the CBI raided his officer-on-special duty (OSD) and others in a corruption case, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Wednesday said it was the BJP's "way of working" ahead of election and claimed that the agency found nothing incriminating and returned "empty-handed."

Mann asserted that neither he nor his government would be cowed down by such tactics, and he is not in politics for money. "Punjabis would never tolerate 'dhakkashahi' (highhandedness)," he said.

The CBI on Tuesday registered a corruption case involving an OSD to Mann and other officers at the direction of the Punjab and Haryana High Court and raided several locations, including the chief minister's "camp office", officials said.

Directing a probe by the federal agency, the high court earlier noted that the material shared by the Enforcement Directorate prima facie indicated the officers' involvement in acts of corruption.

Speaking to reporters in Dhuri in Sangrur on the sidelines of an event, Mann lashed out at the BJP, accusing it of misusing central agencies around elections.

Mann alleged that whenever an election is due, the party starts "harassing" the opposition leaders, their associates, or their family members through raids months before.

"A raid was conducted at Hemant Soren's residence in Chhattisgarh. Elections were due after two months. Similarly, close leaders of Mamata Banerjee in West Bengal were apprehended ahead of elections," he said.

Mann also cited the arrest of Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia in Delhi, and raids by the Enforcement Directorate in Haryana against Congress leaders, both times ahead of an election, as instances of BJP's power abuse.

"From yesterday's raid, it shows they (BJP) are rattled," he said.

"They did not find anything during the raid which lasted 7-8 hours," he claimed, adding that the CBI team went back "empty-handed."

"What will they get from us? We have not come here to indulge in corrupt practices," Mann added.

The AAP leader said that maybe the CBI will now give his party a clean chit and will "tell (Narendra) Modi that 'nothing will be found from here and do not waste our time'."

Mann said the CBI action was also an attempt to tarnish the image of his family.

"This is an attempt to defame me, my family and the work being done by our government. But such conspiracies will not stop us from serving the people of Punjab. The BJP is making futile and desperate attempts to harass us," he said.

"We have big gatherings during our Lok Milni programmes. But BJP's anti-drug yatra has completely turned out to be a flop," he also said.

Referring to Union Home Minister Amit Shah's claim of ending drugs by December 2029, Mann alleged that drugs come from Gujarat via Rajasthan, two states where BJP is in power.

"You should end drugs in Delhi and Gujarat. You have the BSF at the border, and it comes under Amit Shah," he said.

Mann asserted that the people of Punjab will not allow any "arm-twisting" by the Centre through its agencies.

"Have we come here to take money from transfers? This is the allegation they make. They did not find anything. There is no WhatsApp chat; there is nothing," he claimed.

Mann said that the raids were made within 24 hours of the high court order, wondering whether the CBI works on older cases.

"We are not scared of investigation. We will face it," Mann said.

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"Punjabis have never bowed before pressure, and they will not do so now. Punjab is not going to succumb to these tactics. We will stand firm and continue working for Punjab and its people," he said.