Chandigarh: Reacting sharply to the murder of anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota, opposition parties in Punjab—the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and the BJP—tore into the governing Aam Aadmi Party, with state BJP president Kewal Singh Dhillon writing to the Punjab governor seeking a CBI probe into the murder.SAD functionary and former minister Bikram Singh Majithia appealed to the governor to “dissolve the state govt and impose President’s rule as soon as possible to restore peace and stability”.BJP national president Nitin Nabin took to X to slam AAP for the “extremely poor state of law and order in Punjab”. In a post in Punjabi on X, Nabin wrote, “The brazen daylight murder of Parvinder Singh Jhota, who raised his voice against drugs in Mansa, exposes the extremely poor state of law and order in Punjab under the AAP govt.”Nabin further wrote, “The Aam Aadmi Party came to power promising a drug-free Punjab. Today, those who raise their voice against drugs are themselves in danger. This is a serious failure of the administration. If those fighting the drug mafia are not safe, then who is safe in Punjab? The people of Punjab demand answers and accountability.”BJP MP in Rajya Sabha Raghav Chadha posted on X, “Punjab now ranks No. 1 on the ‘Ease of Selling Drugs Index’. Walk into any shop near you or get 10-minute delivery at your doorstep.”Chadha, who switched to BJP from AAP in April this year, alleged, “The daylight murder of anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota in Mansa is not just another crime. It is a direct outcome of the complete breakdown of law and order under Bhagwant Mann’s govt.”He further wrote, “The same people who once promised to finish the drug trade are now the ones under whose watch chemists are selling ‘chitta’ in the open and activists are being eliminated for asking questions. Bhagwant Mann’s ‘Yudh Nashean Virudh’ has turned into a war against those who still try to fight it.”Pointing towards the murders of police officials, the alleged assault on Mohanjit Singh Sheron, the death by suicide of Gulzar Singh and alleging deterioration of law and order and the rapid spread of drugs, Bikram Singh Majithia in a written statement said he was “generally opposed to Governor’s rule”, but appealed to the Punjab Governor to “dissolve the state govt and impose President’s rule as soon as possible to restore peace and stability”.Majithia questioned whether Jhota’s killing was “an attempt to silence everyone who spoke against the govt or the drug trade”.Punjab BJP chief Kewal Singh Dhillon, in the letter to the governor, wrote, “Jhota was not an ordinary citizen. For several years he had been fighting against drug trafficking and the illegal sale of intoxicants, and he risked his life to save the youth of Punjab from this menace. A man who stood up for our children has been silenced by a bullet.”Dhillon further wrote, “Two aspects of this murder are extremely serious and suspicious: the father of the deceased has named the local MLA in his statement; and according to eyewitnesses, the assailant was speaking to someone on the phone just before opening fire, which points towards a conspiracy. When the victim’s family has pointed towards a representative of the ruling establishment, an impartial investigation cannot be expected from the Punjab Police, which functions under the same govt. We, the bereaved family and the people of Punjab, have no faith in the investigation by Punjab Police.”Noting that “the rule of law can survive only when justice is not only done but is also seen to be done”, Dhillon urged the governor to direct the Punjab govt to hand over the investigation of Jhota’s murder to the CBI without delay, “or suitable action be taken at your level”.Dhillon also demanded that all digital and other evidence, including the assailant’s phone call records and the Facebook livestream of the incident, be secured immediately.He sought security for Jhota’s family. Dhillon also sought a thorough investigation into “the nexus behind illegal drug sale in the State.”SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal posted on X, “This heinous murder is a stark reminder that law and order has ceased to exist in Punjab. The deceased had been continuously raising his voice against the drug menace, but no one took heed, and no one supported him. The much-hyped Yudh Nashian Virudh is nothing but a gimmick and has completely failed.”Badal added, “This jungle raj must end.”Former Punjab BJP president Sunil Jakhar posted on X, “The murder of a young man who raised his voice against drugs in Mansa has once again exposed the truth about the Mann govt’s so-called campaign against drugs. Just a few days ago, the DGP had also admitted that medical drugs are on the rise in Punjab, so what steps has the govt taken to stop this, and how much pharma drug misused for intoxication has been seized – people want to know these things.”Taking a jibe at CM Mann, Jakhar wrote, “Bhagwant Mann ji, even if you are just a paper chief minister, you still bear the responsibility towards Punjab.”
