AAP govt faces heat after FBI names Punjab inspector in ‘international extortion’

“The FBI has charged Gurinderjit Singh Nagra, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Tanda, for allegedly collaborating with the Lawrence Bishnoi and Jaggu Bhagwanpuria syndicates to terrorize innocent families. File | Photo Credit: The Hindu

The political atmosphere in Punjab rose on Wednesday (July 8, 2026) after the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) named Punjab Police Inspector Gurinderjit Singh Nagra in an alleged international extortion plot and opposition parties lashed out at the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), terming the episode as a reflection of a complete breakdown of the law.

Congress leader Vijay Inder Singla said revelations from the FBI’s ‘Operation Hard Ball’ exposed the state-gangster nexus that is flourishing right under the nose of the AAP government. “The FBI has charged Gurinderjit Singh Nagra, Station House Officer of Tanda Police Station, in a $400,000 extortion case for allegedly working with Lawrence Bishnoi and Jaggu Bhagwanpuria syndicates to terrorize innocent families,” he said. Mr. Singla added that while global law enforcement is aggressively hunting these criminals, the law and order apparatus has completely broken down in Punjab.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California has announced a coordinated international crackdown codenamed “Operation Hard Ball” against India-based multinational organized crime groups that has resulted in arrests in the United States, Canada and Europe.

Former minister and Shiromani Akali Dal leader Bikram Singh Majithia said that “…if the FBI takes this inspector to the United States, the alleged nexus of AAP, gangsters and the Punjab police will be exposed to the world, which many have been demanding.”

‘Failed to deliver’

Bharatiya Janata Party Punjab unit president Kewal Singh Dhillon said the people of Punjab were demanding answers from the government, which had promised “change” but failed to deliver. “Countless families have been ravaged by drugs, gun violence and murder, but the government continues to remain indifferent,” he said in a statement.

Mr. Dhillon said that Punjab can be saved from the current crisis only through strict laws and zero tolerance policy towards criminals without which lasting peace cannot be restored.

Published – 8 Jul 2026 22:20 IST