Punjab Transfers Murder Investigation of Activist to Central Agency

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann transferred the homicide investigation of anti-drug campaigner Parvinder Singh Jhota to federal investigators on Tuesday as Union Home Minister Amit Shah arrived in the state for political meetings.

Jhota was shot dead on October 13 inside a medical store in Mansa after confronting a store owner regarding the sale of addictive substances to an elderly man.

Four associates sustained injuries during the shooting, which was streamed live on social media.

The store owner, identified as Ashwani Kumar, was later apprehended in Rajasthan.

The killing sparked widespread protests across Punjab and left the body lying at a civil hospital while relatives withheld consent for an autopsy.

State authorities decided to hand over the inquiry to the Central Bureau of Investigation in response to demands from the victim's family and local action committees.

During his tour, Shah traveled to Gurdaspur, Sangrur and Mansa to meet relatives of individuals who died following public opposition to the regional drug trade.

Shah criticized the regional administration for failing to protect citizens who speak out against criminal networks.

“The growing web of drugs in Punjab and the emboldened drug traffickers have raised serious questions about the functioning of the AAP government,” said Amit Shah, the Union home minister.

State Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema rejected the criticism and accused the central government of failing to dismantle supply networks operating outside regional borders.

Cheema asserted that pharmaceutical drugs misused as intoxicants originate in manufacturing plants located in other regions governed by opposition political parties.

“The Centre must explain why it has failed to act against the sources of this supply chain,” said Harpal Singh Cheema, the Punjab finance minister.

Political tensions remain high as regional parties exchange accusations ahead of upcoming assembly elections.