STATE TIMES NEWS
CHANDIGARH/NEW DELHI: Actor and BJP MP-elect Kangana Ranaut said she was hit on the face and abused by a woman CISF constable during security check at the Chandigarh airport on Thursday.
Constable Kulwinder Kaur, who appeared to be upset with Ranaut over her stance on the farmers’ protests, has been suspended and an FIR has been lodged against her, officials said. The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), tasked with providing security at airports, has also ordered a court of inquiry into the incident.
In a video statement titled “Shocking rise in terror and violence in Punjab” posted on X after she landed in Delhi, the “Queen” actor said she was safe and fine. Recapping in detail what had happened, Ranaut said she had been getting a lot of calls from the media and her well-wishers.
The constable, she said, came towards her from the side. “She hit me in the face and started abusing me. I asked her why she did it and she said she supports the farmer protests.” “I am safe but my concern is that terrorism is increasing in Punjab… How do we handle that?” Another video doing the rounds of social media showed an agitated Kaur talking to people presumably after the incident.
“Kangana made a statement that farmers were protesting in Delhi because they were paid Rs 100 or Rs 200. At the time, my mother was one of the protesters,” she said in the purported video.
Kaur joined the CISF in 2009 and has been with the aviation security group of the force at the Chandigarh airport since 2021. Her husband too is posted at the same airport.
Terming the incident a serious matter, National Commission for Women chairperson Rekha Sharma called for serious action and said the panel had taken up the matter with the CISF.
Those responsible for security at airport are themselves breaching security, she said in a post on X.
Leader of the opposition and former Himachal Pradesh chief minister Jai Ram Thakur termed incident very unfortunate and condemned it.
“Such behaviour with an elected representative by security personnel at the airport is very unfortunate and calls for action,” he told PTI.