Bhunder now does flip-flop, says police nab drug addicts, not big suppliers

A day after bringing embarrassment to the party by confessing that he had saved drug peddlers in the past, Rajya Sabha MP and SAD general secretary Balwinder Singh Bhunder, now, seems to be doing a flip-flop. Apparently having been pulled up by the party top brass and following sharp reactions from different quarters on his statement, Bhunder in an attempt to make his point clear made different statements verbally and in written.

A day after bringing embarrassment to the party by confessing that he had saved drug peddlers in the past, Rajya Sabha MP and SAD general secretary Balwinder Singh Bhunder, now, seems to be doing a flip-flop.

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Apparently having been pulled up by the party top brass and following sharp reactions from different quarters on his statement, Bhunder in an attempt to make his point clear made different statements verbally and in written.

After calling this correspondent on phone, he virtually questioned the functioning of Punjab Police in a fight against drug trafficking saying the police arrested addicts but not drug smugglers.

Chief minister Parkash Singh Badal and deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal have made claims of Punjab Police's success against drug peddlers in the state. Sukhbir repeatedly has been saying that high seizure of drugs and arrest of big smugglers in Punjab was a success of Punjab Police in checking drug peddling but has alleged that high drug seizure by Punjab Police has been misutilised for defaming the state portraying as if majority of youth were hooked to drugs in Punjab.

However, in a written statement later, Bhunder levelled the allegations of shielding big drug peddlers and nabbing addicts against the Congress. He said it had been the policy of the Congress government in the state to arrest only the addicts but to spare big suppliers. He said drug trafficking had flourished during the Congress government in the state as well as at the Centre. However, he wrote that the present SAD-led government had put big drug suppliers behind bars.

Bhunder, during his address to party workers during installation of Jagdeep Singh Nakai as chairman of Bathinda District Planning Committee on Tuesday, had said that he had helped drug peddlers in getting bail while he was in jail during emergency and also has helped another peddler during the government of Giani Zail Singh in Punjab. He said the party could help those workers who would tell the truth of indulging in poppy husk supply due to poor financial condition.