This is the bottle found with Mann: Ravneet Bittu on CM's airport 'detention'

BJP leader Ravneet Bittu arrived at the Punjab Assembly premises on Tuesday with a liquor bottle, claiming a similar one was found with Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann when he was stopped at the Delhi airport last week.BJP's Ravneet Bittu at the Punjab Assembly on Tuesday Chandigarh,Oct 27, 2026 15:31 ISTFormer Union Minister and senior BJP leader Ravneet Bittu kicked up a storm on Tuesday after arriving at the Punjab Assembly premises with a liquor bottle in a symbolic attack on Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann. Accusing Mann of being "fond of expensive liquor", Bittu claimed a similar bottle was found with the Chief Minister when he was stopped at the Delhi airport last week."This is the bottle that was found with Bhagwant Mann at the (Delhi) airport. This bottle costs Rs 70,000. Punjab has been ruined, looted," Bittu told reporters. The BJP leader was seen carrying a blue-and-white bottle that social media users identified as Clase Azul Reposado - an ultra-premium tequila from Mexico.In India, it costs anywhere between Rs 35,000-55,000, while expensive variants can go as high as Rs 80,000. Ravneet Bittu at the Punjab Assembly on Tuesday RAVNEET BITTU'S 'TALLI' JAB AT BHAGWANT MANNBittu's attack didn't stop there. He also used the Punjabi word "talli" to take a double swipe at Mann. "This 'talli' explains why nothing has been done in Punjab over the last five years. The Chief Minister has just been busy ringing this 'talli' instead of doing any real, substantive work," the BJP leader said.Now, in Punjab, 'talli' is commonly used to describe someone drunk. But it also refers to a bell or call bell. Pointing to the bell-shaped cap of the liquor bottle, Bittu claimed that Mann would "call" senior officials to issue directions on filing cases against political opponents and other unlawful activities.Essentially, Bittu sought to turn a familiar Punjabi expression into a political metaphor to attack the Chief Minister.ROW OVER CM MANN'S AIRPORT 'DETENTION'Bittu's gesture came amid a raging row over Mann's alleged detention at Delhi's IGI Airport last week.The Punjab Chief Minister was stopped at the airport for nearly three hours after returning from Paris, and was fined Rs 50,000 by customs officials.Mann went to Paris on October 16-17 to promote Punjab's agricultural produce at an international food festival. However, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and the BJP claimed Mann and his wife went to France to celebrate the AAP leader's birthday.AAP's Punjab media in-charge Baltej Pannu, in a video statement, slammed the "unnecessary harassment" meted out to the Chief Minister. Pannu claimed that customs officials initially let Mann leave, but returned soon citing "tremendous pressure from above".However, the AAP did not specify the reason for the challan.The BJP claimed Mann was questioned over allegations that he was carrying excess luggage or undeclared money.The Punjab Chief Minister broke his silence on October 24, claiming that the customs chief at Delhi airport was the brother of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, who has been under opposition fire over alleged SIR irregularities. Mann claimed the opportunity was used to humiliate him.He claimed the officials checked his luggage for two hours and found nothing. "The head of customs at Delhi Airport, Manish, is the real brother of Gyanesh Kumar," Mann said.PREVIOUS ALLEGATIONS AGAINST MANNThe BJP has, on several occassions, accused Mann of being a habitual drinker.Earlier this year, in May, opposition MLAs demanded a blood test on Mann, alleging he attended the Assembly session in a drunken state. However, the Punjab Speaker had rejected the demand.Again, in 2022, opposition parties alleged that Mann was deplaned when he was boarding a flight back to India from Germany as he was "too drunk to walk". The AAP had dismissed the claims. Later, the airline, Lufthansa stated that the flight was delayed due to operational issues.Such allegations have resurfaced frequently despite Mann publicly announcing in 2019 that he had quit alcohol on the advice of his mother.His decision was then praised by AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal, who called it a "great sacrifice".- Ends