CHANDIGARH: The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Tuesday ordered a forensic examination of an alleged audio clip purportedly featuring Patiala Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Varun Sharma issuing directions to DSP-level officers to prevent opposition candidates from filing nomination papers during the Zila Parishad elections held on December 14, 2025.
The division bench of Chief Justice Sheel Nagu and Justice Sanjiv Berry also strongly censured the State Election Commission (SEC) for failing to act on a complaint filed by the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) against the SSP, despite the seriousness of the allegations. The court noted that no effective action was taken by the commission, compelling the SAD to approach the High Court seeking accountability.
According to the petition, the audio clip contains instructions allegedly given by the Patiala SSP to senior police officers to manipulate the electoral process in favour of the ruling dispensation by obstructing opposition candidates. A day before the High Court issued notice to the Punjab government in the matter, the clip was sent for forensic examination to the Mohali forensic laboratory, which functions under the administrative control of the Punjab government—a move questioned by the SAD.
SAD spokesperson Arshdeep Kaler alleged that Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann was “shielding erring police officers.” He pointed out that although a special investigation team (SIT) was constituted to probe the matter, it issued notices only to the SAD and the SSP, while other police officers whose voices were allegedly heard in the audio clip were never summoned.
During an earlier hearing on January 16, the High Court had questioned the SEC on why the SIT had failed to submit its report even more than a month after the court’s December 10 order. The bench directed the commission to submit the report within three weeks.
SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal, who filed the petition, told the court that instead of initiating action against the police officers involved, the SIT chose to write to social media platforms seeking the IP address of the device from which the audio clip was uploaded. He alleged that the Election Commission failed to exercise its statutory powers due to pressure from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government.
With the High Court now ordering a forensic examination of the clip and closely monitoring the role of the Election Commission and the SIT, the matter remains under judicial scrutiny, raising serious questions over the conduct of the police and the independence of electoral oversight in Punjab.