Amit Shah targets AAP govt, seeks transfer of Punjab anti-drug activists' death cases to CBI

Union home minister Amit Shah on Tuesday flayed the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab over the state's drug crisis and asked it to hand over the probe into the deaths of anti-drug activists and victims to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

Welcoming chief minister Bhagwant Mann's decision to transfer the probe into the murder of anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota to the CBI, Shah, who was on a day-long visit to Punjab, advised the state government to also hand over two other cases involving the deaths of a Dalit man in Sangrur and Bikramjit Singh in Gurdaspur to the central agency. "Trust me, you won't be able to solve these two cases either, so please hand these over to the CBI," the home minister said at a press conference in Ludhiana, citing the victims' families' demands for a probe by the federal agency. He assured that no accused would be spared, regardless of their influence or position.

"The BJP will also approach a court to seek a CBI probe into these cases. We are determined to ensure justice," said the home minister.

Shah was in the state to meet the family members of those who had died in incidents linked to opposition to the drug menace in their areas in Gurdaspur, Sangrur and Mansa. However, hours before his arrival, chief minister Bhagwant Mann announced the state government's decision to hand over the investigation into Jhota's murder case to the CBI. "Accepting the demand of the family, we are handing over this case to the CBI. Our fight against drug peddlers is all-out, and we will not back down from whatever drastic steps we have to take to make Punjab drug-free," Mann posted on X.

Jhota, a vocal campaigner against the illegal sale of addictive drugs at chemist shops, was shot dead at a pharmacy by its owner in Mansa on October 13.

Recalling his meeting with the bereaved families, Shah said he never felt so deeply saddened in life as he did while meeting with them. He said the situation on the ground appeared graver than what was generally reported in government records.

"For my entire life, I won't be able to forget this Vijayadashami," the home minister said, alleging that people who speak out against drugs in Punjab are either murdered or forced to commit suicide. Shah also slammed the state government for what he termed its failure to curb drug trafficking which had become entrenched at the grassroots level, extending into villages across the state. "Neither the people of Punjab, nor I have any hopes from you," he said.

Shah's second Punjab visit in three weeks was significant in view of the BJP's poll push in the border state where assembly elections are due early next year.

The BJP has made drug menace the central theme of its election campaign, once again bringing this long-pending issue into the spotlight. The party's 4,000-km "Nasha Mukt Punjab Yatra", flagged off by the party's national president Nitin Nabin last month, covered the entire state before culminating in Jalandhar where Shah, addressing a rally, pledged that if voted to power, the BJP will free the state from "chitta" (heroin) by December 2029. During the yatra, BJP leaders had interacted with the families of victims of drug abuse in various parts of the state.

Responding to Shah's criticism, Mann and cabinet ministers Harpal Singh Cheema and Aman Arora - the top three AAP leaders in Punjab - lashed out at the central government, questioning its action against synthetic and pharmaceutical drugs.

Mann claimed that the BJP was unable to win the confidence of Punjab's people, and it was, therefore, looking for one pretext or another to defame his government. "We have already recommended a CBI probe. Let the investigation take place. We do not protect anyone," he said, alleging that the BJP's sudden concern for Punjab was politically motivated.

He also questioned the BJP's record on issues concerning Punjab's rights such as claims over Chandigarh, river waters, Panjab University and the Bhakra Beas Management Board. In the 2022 assembly elections, AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal had vowed that Punjab would be made drug-free within three months if the party formed the government in state.

Earlier in the day, Shah started his state tour from Gurdaspur's Batala sub-division where he met the family of Bikramjit Singh, a 40-year-old man who was killed in Mari Panwan village on October 15 in an incident allegedly linked to his opposition to drug peddling. Shah met the grieving family and touched Bikramjit's mother's feet as a gesture of respect, assuring them that a CBI probe would be conducted. Accompanied by Punjab BJP president Kewal Singh Dhillon and senior party leaders, the home minister travelled to Toor Banjara village in Sangrur to meet the family of a Dalit daily-wager who died by suicide on September 7.

The death reportedly followed alleged harassment and casteist slurs after he publicly questioned finance minister Harpal Singh Cheema during a public event about the illegal sale of drugs in the area. Shah also addressed the "Ravan Dahan" ceremony in Ludhiana - his last stop for the day in the state -- on Dussehra.