Punjab Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Harmeet Singh Dhillon Pathanmajra, who was arrested on rape and cheating charges, escaped police custody in Karnal on Tuesday after allegedly opening fire at officers.
According to India Today TV, the Sanour legislator was being taken to a local police station when he and his aides fired shots, injuring one policeman. In the ensuing chaos, Pathanmajra allegedly drove a vehicle over another officer before fleeing in a Scorpio SUV. Police later seized a Fortuner that was used during the escape. A large-scale manhunt has been launched to trace the MLA.
Pathanmajra’s arrest followed an FIR lodged by a Zirakpur woman, who accused him of misrepresenting himself as divorced before entering into a relationship with her. She alleged he married her in 2021 while still married, sexually exploited her, sent obscene material, and issued threats. The case against him includes charges of rape, cheating, and criminal intimidation.
Political Defiance and Rift Within AAP
The legislator has claimed the allegations are politically motivated. After the FIR was registered, he went live on Facebook, accusing the AAP’s Delhi leadership of “illegitimately ruling Punjab” and targeting him for speaking out. “They can lodge FIRs against me, I can stay in jail, but my voice cannot be suppressed,” Pathanmajra said.
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His lawyer, advocate Simranjeet Singh Saggu, argued that the complainant had admitted in court to a live-in relationship with the MLA, calling the charges baseless.
Pathanmajra had also been at odds with his party over the handling of recent floods in Patiala. He accused senior officials of ignoring repeated warnings to desilt rivers such as the Tangri, claiming this worsened flooding in nearby villages. The MLA also alleged that his security was withdrawn and local police officers were transferred as an act of retaliation.
