CISF constable who hit Mandi MP Kangana Ranaut booked

The Mohali police on Friday booked the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) woman constable for allegedly slapping and abusing newly elected Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Kangana Ranaut at the Chandigarh airport.

Police have booked the CISF constable, identified as Kulwinder Kaur, on the basis of a complaint lodged by Ranaut.

“Police have registered a case against the CISF constable under Sections 323 (Punishment for voluntarily causing hurt) and 341 (Whoever wrongfully restrains any person) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) following the complaint of CISF at Airport Mohali police station. Both are bailable sections, and the accused is yet to be arrested,” an officer familiar with the matter said.

CISF DIG Vinay Kumar Kajla, who arrived at the Chandigarh Airport on Friday to conduct a thorough investigation into the matter, said: “She has not been arrested, she has been suspended. Enquiries are on to determine and ascertain what caused this outburst. It seems to be a rush of blood to her head, based on the past statements passed by the MP. It is a tragic incident.”

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The incident occurred around 3 pm on Thursday at the Chandigarh airport security checkpoint ahead of Ranaut’s flight to Delhi. The BJP MP, in her video, alleged that the constable approached her from the side as she was waiting in the security check area, hit her and began hurling abuses at her, seemingly without any provocation. When Ranaut asked for the reason for her behaviour, Kaur allegedly told Ranaut that she was a supporter of the farmers’ protests.

Kajla said: “Kaur was on the frisking booth and MP was on the adjacent frisking booth, there was no direct contact between them till the point of altercation... We are also reviewing security protocols for visits by senior functionaries to our airport.”

Kaur’s husband is also posted with CISF in Jammu and the couple have two children.

“We have sent her husband also on leave for a few days to normalise the family. We are also reviewing security protocols,” the CISF DIG added.

The officials are yet to officially comment on the motive of the alleged assault, Ranaut in a video clip linked it to “extremism and terrorism” in Punjab, although a video of the suspect appeared to suggest she lashed out over the Mandi MP-elect’s stand on the farmers’ protest.

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Meanwhile, farmer outfits on Friday threw their weight behind the CISF constable and said that the incident needs to be properly investigated.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM) were among the prominent outfits whose leaders met Punjab’s director general of police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav and demanded a thorough probe.

SKM (Non-Political) leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal said: “The main issue which we raised is that there should be no injustice to the constable. We have been assured that investigations are being held in an impartial manner,” Dallewal said after the meeting. KMM general secretary Sarwan Singh Pandher was also present at the meeting.

Farmer unions announced a protest march on June 9 from Amb Sahib gurdwara in Mohali to the SSP office, demanding justice for the CISF constable.

Many politicians, including former Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar, and former Himachal Pradesh CM Jai Ram Thakur and Punjab BJP chief Sunil Jakhar condemned the incident.