AAP protesters ‘try’ to write ‘gaddar’ on glass panels of Ashok Mittal’s Lovely Sweets shop in Jalandhar

Irate AAP workers on Sunday smeared red paint over the glass panels of Jalandhar’s famous Lovely Sweets during the second day of protests against Lovely Group’s Ashok Mittal, the Rajya Sabha MP who resigned from the Aam Aadmi Party to join the BJP on Friday, along with six other AAP Rajya Sabha MPs. Holding an ‘arthi phoonk mujahra’, AAP workers draped a white cloth over an effigy, which they later burned outside the premises of the famous and historic sweets shop, raising slogans against Mittal.

In Jalandhar, Mittal, along with Harbhajan Singh, has been the target of AAP workers’ ire for the past two days after they made the switch to the BJP on Friday.

After spray-painting “gaddar” (traitor) on the gates of Lovely Professional University on Saturday, AAP workers on Sunday brought red paint in a can and attempted to write the word “traitor” again on the glass panels of the sweet shop. However, they were prevented by Punjab Police personnel, who stopped repeated attempts to deface the property. Eventually, the glass panels of the confectionery store were left smeared with red paint.

While protests at Harbhajan Singh’s residence were met with barricades, at Lovely Sweets, workers had a minutes-long standoff with police personnel, who physically tried to prevent them from reaching the store.

The workers engaged in intense sloganeering against Mittal and also burned a shrouded effigy along with posters of other AAP MPs who had joined the BJP. At Harbhajan Singh’s house, protesters were kept at bay by police deployed at the premises, along with CRPF personnel.

Notably, Lovely Sweets is the original business of the Lovely Group, from which its decades-long expansion into larger businesses in the state began. From a 10×10 confectionery shop, the group expanded to a larger sweet store on Nakodar Road (the present location), which became an iconic and sought-after brand in the state. The Lovely Group’s multi-business conglomerate later grew from this foundation, including its entry into the education sector with Lovely Professional University.

Apart from the university, the Lovely Group today operates businesses in sweets, bakery, furnishing, sanitation, and several other sectors