Seven days have passed since Punjab anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh, alias Jhota, was shot dead inside a medical store at a busy market in Mansa. However, he is yet to be cremated as his father, an ex-serviceman, Bhim Singh, had announced on October 13 that the family would not allow a post-mortem or conduct the last rites until the case is handed to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
But now Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann has announced that the state government will hand over the probe into the murder case to the CBI. Jhota's murder on October 13 was livestreamed on Facebook.
The Punjab government announcement came ahead of Union home minister Amit Shah's visit the family of Jhota and two other anti-drug activists killed in Punjab recently. Shah on Tuesday met the aggrieved families amid growing concerns over drug trafficking and law and order in Punjab.
During his visit to Punjab, Shah went to the residence of late Bikramjit Singh in Gurdaspur to offer his condolences to the bereaved family. He also met with the family members of Gulzar Singh, who was killed for standing up against local chitta (synthetic drugs) peddlers in Sangrur.
In a post shared on X, Shah expressed his grief, saying, "Today, at the residence of the family of late Bikramjit Singh ji, who lost his life for raising his voice against the unchecked drug trade in Punjab under the AAP government, I met them in Gurdaspur and expressed my condolences. May God grant them the strength to bear this sorrow."
Amid Mann government's announcement of a CBI probe in Jhota's killing, Shah assured that the central agency will pursue the culprits involved in the killing regardless of their influence.
“This morning, upon returning after celebrating his birthday, Bhagwant Mann Ji did one good thing—he handed over one inquiry to the CBI. I want to give my word to the people of Punjab: in the case handed over to us, whoever is found guilty—no matter how powerful or big they are—we will track them down even from the depths of the earth and hand them over to the law. We will bring them before the court,” Shah said in a dig at CM Mann, news agency PTI reported.
"And today, I also want to appeal to the Chief Minister: you will not be able to handle it. Hand over the remaining two cases to the CBI as well. That is also the demand of their family members," he added.
Shah said the ground reality described by the victims' families and residents was far more severe than what is captured in administrative files.
"Meeting these three families, as well as the locals who were troubled and distressed by the chitta (drug) trade and had gathered at their homes—the reality of the situation in Punjab that they described turned out to be far more gut-wrenching and shattering than anything we read in official paper reports in Delhi," Shah said.
Shah set a deadline of December 31, 2029, to eradicate the illicit narcotics network from Punjab, asserting that the Centre will track down and prosecute all perpetrators involved in the killings of anti-drug activists in the state.