E-Paper
Amit Shah to visit Punjab on Oct 20, meet families of anti-drug victims
Home minister to meet three families in Mansa, Gurdaspur and Sangrur; second Punjab visit in 20 days
Prefer HTon Google
Union home minister Amit Shah will visit Punjab on October 20 to meet the families of three people who recently died in incidents linked to opposition to the drug menace in Mansa, Sangrur and Gurdaspur, he announced on Sunday.
The announcement comes two days after the Union home ministry, through three separate letters, sought detailed reports from the Punjab government on the deaths, which have triggered a fresh political storm over drugs in the state.
This will be Shah’s second visit to poll-bound Punjab in 20 days. He visited Jalandhar on September 30 and addressed a rally marking the culmination of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s “Nasha Mukt Punjab Yatra”, which began on September 18. He had also visited Moga in March, where he said only the BJP could make Punjab drug-free.
In posts in Hindi and Punjabi on X, Shah accused the Aam Aadmi Party government of allowing the drug menace to worsen in Punjab and said he would meet the families of those who had recently lost their lives after raising their voices against drug smugglers.
“The Aam Aadmi Party government has left no stone unturned in pushing Punjab into the quagmire of drugs, as a result of which countless families have had to lose their children,” Shah said.
He said the grief of what these families had lost cannot be expressed in words: “The attempts to suppress the voices rising against this black trade of drugs will never succeed, and the people of Punjab will give a befitting reply to this. The Government of India will selectively put the drug smugglers behind bars and will ensure the entire country, including Punjab, is freed from this black trade of drugs.”
BJP sharpens focus on drugs ahead of Punjab polls
With drugs emerging as a key issue ahead of Punjab’s assembly elections, due early next year, Shah’s move to meet the three families comes as the BJP seeks to expand its political footprint in Punjab ahead of the polls. The party, which has announced that it will contest the polls independently, has promised to make Punjab “drug-free by December 2029” if voted to power.
BJP leader and former Union minister Ravneet Singh Bittu told HT, “At a time when Punjab is battling the grave menace of drugs, we need decisive action, strong leadership and a firm resolve to secure our youth and our future.”
Lashing back at Shah, the AAP asked the Union home minister to stop lecturing Punjab on the drug menace and instead explain what concrete steps the Centre had taken to prevent drugs from entering the country through Gujarat’s Mundra port.
In a statement, Punjab AAP media in-charge Baltej Pannu questioned why Shah had started raising the issue now, alleging that the Centre’s intervention came only after the Bhagwant Mann government launched its “Yudh Nashean Virudh” campaign.
Three deaths trigger Centre’s intervention
According to party leaders, Shah will first visit Mansa to meet the family of anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota, who was shot dead on October 13.
He will then travel to Gurdaspur to meet the family of anti-drug activist Bikramjit Singh, who was allegedly hacked to death in Mari Panwan village in Batala on October 15. While police have ruled out any drug angle, villagers have linked the murder to Bikramjit’s opposition to the drug trade in the area.
Shah will then head to Sangrur to meet the family of a Dalit man who allegedly died by suicide following a public spat with state finance minister Harpal Singh Cheema over allegations of “chitta” (heroin) being sold and supplied in his village. The confrontation took place during a government event in Dirba on September 8.
The three deaths prompted the Union home ministry to write separate letters to the Punjab government seeking detailed reports on the cases.
Citing protests and potential law-and-order ramifications, the ministry sought a comprehensive account of the steps taken by the state government. The Centre also drew Punjab’s attention to the Vision Document on Narcotics Control (2026-29), which Shah shared with chief minister Bhagwant Mann on August 10 and which lays out strategic priorities towards a drug-free India by 2029.
Shah-Mann spar over drug menace
The Centre’s move triggered a war of words between Shah and Mann, with both trading charges over handling of the drug menace.
Targeting the AAP government in a post on X, Shah said Punjab was grappling with a growing threat from drugs, gangsterism and organised crime.
Addressing Mann directly, Shah declared: “Bhagwant Mann ji, the people of Punjab do not want promises, they want answers; not announcements, but results; decisive strikes against drug networks; and an impartial investigation into any political patronage received by criminals.”
Mann hit back, accusing the BJP-led Centre of defaming Punjab instead of curbing the supply of drugs through Gujarat’s ports. He cited the seizure of 3,000 kg of synthetic drugs at Kandla port and pointed out that the 50-km belt along the international border fell under the jurisdiction of the Border Security Force (BSF), a centrally controlled force.
AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal also alleged that drugs were entering the country through Mundra and other ports associated with the Adani group, under the Centre’s oversight.
Even as the Centre sought reports, the Mann government, the same day, unveiled a 60-day anti-drug strategy targeting 435 hotspots with coordinated policing, infrastructure upgrades, and specialised rehabilitation programmes.
Slain Mansa activist’s supporters oppose visit
Meanwhile, the Insaaf Committee, which is seeking justice in the murder of anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota, opposed the home minister’s scheduled meeting with the aggrieved family in Mansa.
Addressing a press conference, Rajwinder Singh Rana, a leftist leader from Mansa, said the panel would ask the deceased’s father, Bhim Singh, to stay away from the meeting.
The bereaved family has yet to issue any statement on the committee’s stand against Shah’s visit.
On earlier occasions during the ongoing protest, Bhim, an ex-serviceman, had reportedly urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Shah for justice.
Accompanied by other members of the committee, Rana said the committee opposed Shah because the drug menace was prevalent in all states, not just Punjab. “The BJP-led governments had failed to curb narcotics in the states where the BJP is in power.
“Shah’s politics is driven by politics as the BJP leadership is trying to encash Jhota’s tragic death for its electoral ambitions in Punjab,” said Rana.
Since Jhota was shot dead by a pharmacy store operator, Ashwani Kumar, who is accused of being a member of a drug trafficking cartel, on October 13, the aggrieved family and the Insaaf Committee have been demanding a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), a federal agency.
Jhota’s body has been lying in the mortuary of Mansa civil hospital for the last five days, and the autopsy has not been conducted due to an ongoing protest.
Another committee member, Manik Goyal, added that the panel had agreed to the district administration’s invitation for a table talk. “We think that the matter would be resolved with talks with the authorities. A meeting is expected to be held tomorrow after a statewide three-hour protest against the leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party,” said Goyal.
