The incident happened when Mand along with his wife and three other couples, including an NRI couple, arrived at the restaurant, The Hub in Ghumar Mandi, for dinner. The NRI, Paramjit Singh Passi, entered into an argument with a staffer there and a scuffle broke out between them.

When the other staff members ganged up against Passi, Mand tried to intervene in a bid to resolve the fight. However, he was thrashed by the staff led by Maninder.

In the commotion, Mand apparently fell on the ground and fractured his right leg. Passi and his friends took him to DMC Hospital where he underwent a surgery. Mand is yet to record his statement.

ADGP (Intelligence) and spokesman for Punjab Police, H S Dhillon, said Maninder and his accomplices also snatched Passi’s licenced .32 bore revolver. “A case under various IPC and Arms Act including attempt to murder has been registered against Maninder, Jaskirat Singh and Rishi Banda and several other unknown persons based on a complaint by Passi,” he said.

Meanwhile, SAD spokesman Daljeet Singh Cheema clarified that Maninder, Jaskirat and Rishi were not part of the party or its youth wing. He said while Maninder was senior vice-president of Youth Akali Dal (YAD) in Ludhiana, Rishi was vice-president at the same place.

They were expelled on May 29 along with Jaskirat Singh who was YAD Amritsar vice-president for anti-party activities during the municipal polls.

“Till now no arrests have been made and police have been sent to different places to nab them,” Dhillon said. Sources said the police have raided the restaurant and seized the CCTV footage from there.

Sources said Maninder is considered close to YAD president and Public Relations Minister Bikramjit Singh Majithia and was seen with minister recently at the barsi of parents of Mahesh Inder Grewal, adviser of the chief minister.

Majithia termed the incident “unfortunate” and said law will take its own course.

The SAD, which condemned the attack on the police officer, blamed it on the Congress and said it was a deep-rooted conspiracy to tarnish the party’s image. N K Sharma, SAD treasurer and joint secretary, in a statement alleged that the expelled YAD members were paid by the Congress to divert the attention from the news about its MLA, Joginder Pal Jain, joining the SAD.