Chandigarh, Aug. 23 -- The political atmosphere in Punjab turned stormy on Friday after BJP leader Sunil Jakhar was detained by police in Abohar while he was participating in the party's outreach programme "BJP De Sewadar, Tuhade Dwaar." His detention came a day after multiple senior BJP leaders, including former ministers and ex-MPs, were taken into custody from similar camps across the state, prompting the saffron party to accuse the Aam Aadmi Party government of lying to people and misusing the police, while AAP countered by branding BJP as "chor" out to steal citizens' data.

Police maintained that the BJP-run camps violated the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023. Officials alleged that sensitive information such as Aadhaar de...