Anti-drug activist killing: Father invites Amit Shah home as Punjab government weighs concessions to end standoff

The family of slain anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota Monday said it will meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah during his visit to Mansa on Tuesday and demand a CBI probe, even as the first formal meeting between the action committee formed over the murder and the Punjab government failed to break the deadlock over his cremation.

A medical store owner allegedly shot dead Jhota in Mansa on October 13 after the activist questioned him for selling addictive drugs to an elderly man. Ashwani Kumar, the store owner, was later from Rajasthan’s Salasar.

Jhota’s father, Bhim Singh, a retired ex-serviceman, said that he wants Shah to visit his house instead of going to the protest site where they a dharna is going on for the last six days demanding resignation of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and DGP Gaurav Yadav, and a CBI probe into the killing.

“I request Amit Shah ji that a CBI probe should be ordered as soon as possible. He should meet the family personally. He can ensure justice for us,” said Bhim Singh.

He said he respects the minister. “If he (Shah) is opposed, I am opposed,” he further said,, adding “If anyone protests against the home minister, then it will be a disgrace to us”.

Bhim Singh’s decision to meet Shah comes despite the action committee’s opposition to the visit. Shah is scheduled to meet the families of anti-drug campaigners who allegedly lost their lives in Sangrur, Mansa and Gurdaspur.

In a video message, Bhim Singh said some people associated with the agitation had misled him and taken decisions without giving him complete information. “Getting justice for my son is the priority. No political leader coming on this issue should be opposed, and all leaders visiting the protest site should be welcomed,” he said.

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Meanwhile, a 27-member delegation of the action committee, led by Jhota’s wife, Manpreet Kaur, and including Bhim Singh, met a high-level team of government officials and police officers. The meeting, which lasted around one-and-a-half hours, was the first formal engagement between the government and the committee since Jhota’s death.

Manpreet submitted a written charter of demands to the government team that included Special Secretary Apneet Riyat, Divisional Commissioner Kanwalpreet Kaur Brar, Mansa Deputy Commissioner Navjot Kaur, DIG Bathinda Range Harjeet Singh, SSP Mansa Vaibhav Chaudhary and AIG Counter Intelligence Avneet Kaur Sidhu.

Addressing the media after the meeting, Riyat said the administration had prioritised hearing the family’s grievances before discussing its own proposals.

“Today, more than our own proposals, it was important for us to listen to the family, because this was the very first formal meeting with them and the action committee,” she said.

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The demands include resignations of CM Mann and DGP Yadav, action against police and health department officials, dedicating the Khalsa School, where Jhota used to play cricket, to him, associating the upcoming trauma centre in Mansa with his memory, installing his statue at a stadium and providing proper treatment and compensation to those injured in the incident.

Riyat said the demands had been discussed and the administration would give the family a concrete response after further consultations with the government. Referring to Jhota as a “martyr”, she said he had lost his life for an important cause and deserved that recognition. She said the family too desires an early cremation.

Sources said the government had prepared a proposal to offer Rs 10 lakh each to those injured in the incident and a government job to Bhim Singh. It is also considering transferring the investigation to a Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by IPS officer Amit Prasad.

The government is understood to be willing to accept seven of the committee’s nine demands but is reluctant to agree to a CBI probe or the resignations of Mann and Yadav.

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However, Guriqbal Singh Mahal, a member of the action committee who attended the meeting, said the delegation had reiterated its principal demands. “We demanded that the CM and DGP must resign and the probe should be handed over to the CBI,” he said.

Earlier, the government had assigned Sardulgarh MLA Gurpreet Singh Banawali to hold back-channel discussions in an attempt to resolve the impasse.

The family and the action committee have refused to cremate Jhota until their demands are addressed. The standoff has put the AAP government under pressure over law and order and its anti-drug campaign, with opposition parties questioning the administration’s response to the killing of an activist who had campaigned against drug trafficking.

As part of the agitation, the action committee had called for the delivery of “Lahnat Letters” (shame letters) to AAP legislators and ministers over their alleged silence on the murder. Protesters staged demonstrations outside the residences of the Cabinet ministers and ruling party MLAs across Punjab from noon to 3 pm.

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In Mansa, notices were pasted outside the residences of three AAP legislators — Vijay Singla, Gurpreet Singh Banawali and Principal Budh Ram. Addressing protesters, former MLA Comrade Hardev Arshi, Darshan Jatana and Bhana Sidhu questioned the representatives’ response to the drug problem and demanded accountability for the killing.

Farmers’ and labour unions joined the protests, with parties other than the AAP participating in the agitation. A heated exchange was also reported between Lakha Sidhana and Shiromani Akali Dal leaders during a joint protest in Maur in Bathinda district.