Rakesh Tikait urges Parvinder Singh Jhota’s family to cremate body, carry on anti-drug fight

Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) national president Rakesh Tikait on Saturday appealed to the family of slain anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota to perform his last rites while urging supporters to carry forward his fight against narcotics, as the deadlock over the cremation of the activist’s body continued for the 12th day.

Visiting Mansa to express solidarity with Jhota’s family and the joint action committee spearheading the agitation, Tikait said the struggle for justice and a drug-free Punjab must continue even after the cremation.

“The family should consider performing the cremation so that all aspects of the situation become clear, but we understand the profound pain they are enduring,” he said, adding that the farmer organisations would support whatever decision the committee took.

Describing Jhota as a martyr who laid down his life fighting drugs, Tikait urged the youth to turn his campaign into a mass movement. He called for stringent action against those selling intoxicating medicines and said drug trafficking should attract punishment for murder.

Targeting both the state and the Centre over the drug menace, Tikait questioned the whereabouts of a consignment of drugs worth Rs 21,000 crore reportedly seized at a port in Gujarat, demanding clarification on whether it had been destroyed or diverted.

He alleged that narcotics were entering the country through multiple routes, including Gujarat and Nepal, and warned that the unchecked spread of drugs threatened Punjab’s youth. Tikait also criticised Union Home Minister Amit Shah, saying politicians were visiting Jhota’s family seeking votes despite the Centre’s failure to acknowledge the sacrifices of 750 farmers during the Delhi agitation.

Meanwhile, Jhota’s father, Bhim Singh alleged that the police had failed to act promptly after his son was shot and demanded a probe into the role of the officers concerned. He also questioned the administration’s claim that action had been taken against officials, saying the family had not received copies of the relevant government orders.

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He also demanded the immediate transfer of Mansa SSP Vaibhav Chaudhary. “We demand immediate transfer of the SSP. He should not be present at meetings the administration holds with us,” Bhim Singh said. The family has also demanded the dismissal of suspended DSP Harjinder Singh Gill, besides the resignations of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and DGP Gaurav Yadav.

In another development, CBI officials conducted raids at multiple medical stores in Mansa on Saturday morning as part of the investigation into the alleged illegal stocking and sale of restricted pharmaceutical drugs.

Former Punjab BJP president Sunil Jakhar also visited the family and paid tribute to Jhota, saying his campaign had given a new direction to the anti-drug movement. He said the struggle was aimed at saving Punjab from narcotics rather than targeting any individual.

Jakhar warned that the lives of young people and the state’s future were at stake, and stressed the need to protect those who exposed drug trafficking.

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Punjab Congress president Pargat Singh, meanwhile, praised Bhim Singh for continuing to demand justice despite his personal loss. Speaking in Jalandhar, he said the father had also appealed to people to maintain communal harmony and encouraged members of the Hindu community to celebrate their festivals.

Pargat accused the Aam Aadmi Party government of failing to curb the illegal sale of intoxicating medicines over the past five years, alleging that action against chemists came only after Jhota’s killing. He demanded Mann’s resignation, saying the government had failed to control the drug trade and the law-and-order situation. He also accused the ruling party of evading accountability in the state Assembly over the demand for justice in the case.

Jhota was shot dead on October 13 inside a medical store in a busy Mansa marketplace while hosting a Facebook Live session. He had allegedly confronted the shop owner, Ashwani Kumar, over the sale of addictive medicines to an elderly man. Kumar was subsequently arrested in Salasar, Rajasthan.

The killing triggered widespread protests, with the family and the joint action committee refusing to allow a post-mortem until their demands were met. These include the resignations of the Chief Minister and the DGP, along with action against police officials.

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A three-member committee of women IAS officers — Navjot Kaur, Kanwalpreet Kaur Brar and Apnit Riyat — met the family and the action committee for the third time on Friday. Riyat later said the family had been informed that the government had acted on several demands, including transferring the investigation to the CBI. The family, however, has continued to withhold consent for the post-mortem and cremation.