From digitally dressing up a turbaned Sikh politician in an off-shoulder woman outfit to showing a chief minister being slapped inside a classroom, the social media battle between political rivals in Punjab seems to have hit a new low in the run-up to the Assembly polls due in February 2027.
With the parties increasingly using AI-generated videos, memes and images to attack their opponents, the lines between political satire and personal attacks appear to be getting blurred. This has recently led to a court intervening in a case involving Congress MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira.
In a video circulated on Facebook by a handle called “Charda Punjab” and on Instagram by “Charda_apunjab”, Khaira’s face, beard and turbaned Sikh appearance were allegedly superimposed on an artificially generated body of a woman.
“Parties must refrain from putting up such posts as it takes the political discourse too low. Even while dealing with opponents, a certain degree of standard and grace must be maintained. I moved court as I felt strongly about it,” Khaira told The Indian Express.
After this video went viral, Khaira approached the Chandigarh District Court, seeking protection of his reputation, dignity and personality rights, besides damages.
While granting ad-interim relief, the court observed that the content appeared to be defamatory, objectionable and AI-generated, and that its continued circulation could cause irreparable injury. It also directed Meta to take down the post and disable access within 72 hours.
BJP joins in
Barely weeks later, however, the social media battle appeared to have descended another notch. Last week, the Punjab BJP’s official social media handle shared an AI-generated video in which Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann was shown being slapped inside a classroom.
The video was built around a controversy over alleged spelling mistakes in educational material. It showed a student writing incorrect spellings in a notebook, with CM Mann, AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal and Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains appearing in the classroom. Mann was then shown being slapped.
The BJP later deleted the video after it drew criticism. Punjab BJP president Kewal Singh Dhillon sought to distance himself from the post, saying he had not seen the video and did not want the CM to be insulted.
Social activist Tehseen Poonawalla wrote on X: “This ad is astonishingly arrogant & stupid! Showing a Chief Minister, actually any human being slapped is not a political argument.”
He added that reducing campaigning to “playground violence” amounted to losing the political debate, describing the video as “childishness with the Lotus symbol”.
AAP, BJP spar
The AAP and the BJP subsequently traded charges over the use of AI-generated content.
AAP spokesperson Bikramjit Passey demanded an apology from the BJP. “They should be ashamed that they are posting such videos. The BJP has always spread hatred and should apologise. They are slapping a man in a turban and that too someone occupies a constitutional post,” he said.
BJP spokesperson Pritpal Singh Baliewal, however, said the party would not apologise. “If we open AAP’s social media pages, you will see many Punjab’s Sikh leaders being mocked at with AI videos. How will the AAP respond to this? In our video, did we mention anywhere that it was Mann? We will not apologise,” he said.
