Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday said law and order had completely collapsed in Punjab and it was beyond the capacity of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) to restore peace in the state.

Rahul, who had gone to Mansa to meet the family members of singer Sidhu Moosewala who was shot dead a few days ago, tweeted: “It is difficult to explain the pain and agony that Sidhu Moosewala’s parents are passing through. It is our duty to ensure they get justice. We will see to it that they get justice. The law and order situation has completely collapsed in the state. To maintain peace and harmony in the state is beyond the capacity of the AAP government.”

Moosewala, a popular singer viewed as Punjab’s youth icon, had contested the last Assembly election on a Congress ticket. The Congress has stood by the family in this hour of grief. State Congress president Amrinder Singh Raja Brar, who was present with Rahul along with other senior leaders of the state, also attacked the state government on the law and order situation.

On Monday, he had tweeted: “Seven murders in seven days in Punjab! Bhagwant Mann sahib, ask yourself, what is happening under your command, if you are really in command. Moosewala on 29/5, Double murder in Patiala village on 30/5, 4 persons killed on June 1,2,3 & 4 in Amritsar, Morinda, Moga & Majitha.”

Former chief minister and now BJP leader Amrinder Singh has also said law and order have collapsed in the state.

Apart from several alarming violent incidents that took place after the formation of the AAP government in the state, pro-Khalistan slogans were raised by supporters of radical Sikh outfits at the Golden Temple on the 38th anniversary of Operation Bluestar on Monday.

Many youths held banners and placards with “Khalistan Zindabad” written on them. They wore T-shirts with the picture of slain separatist leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale printed on them. Pro-Khalistan slogans were also raised by activists of the Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) outfit led by former MP Simranjit Singh Mann, who was also present at the spot.

The Congress is being seriously challenged by the AAP in several states after their success in uprooting the party in Delhi and Punjab.

While Delhi was being seen as an isolated case, the AAP’s Punjab victory has dramatically altered the political dynamics. Arvind Kejriwal’s party has launched massive campaigns in Gujarat, Himachal and Haryana where the Congress is the main challenger to the BJP. The presence of the AAP hurt the Congress in Goa recently.

If the Congress can’t manage to ward off the AAP challenge in Gujarat and Himachal later this year, the party’s supremacy in the Opposition camp is bound to be seriously affected. Though the Congress, completely wiped out in Delhi, could not pose any challenge to Kejriwal there, Rahul and the state unit are unusually belligerent against the Mann government in Punjab.