CHANDIGARH: Sukhpal Singh Khaira President of Punjab Ekta Party today raised alarm over rising deaths of Punjab youth with the drug overdose contrary to claims by Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh that drug mafia is wiped out of Punjab.
Khaira in a statement demanded to immediately call an all party meeting to take stock of alarming situation in Punjab. He said that only yesterday six youths had lost lives due to drug overdose and reports of similar deaths are reported almost daily from different parts of the state. He said that the rising number of deaths due to drug overdose was serious issue and Capt Amarinder Singh is answerable to people of Punjab for making lies on the drug issue. .
He said that according to a news report in Punjabi daily, one youth had died in Dasuya in Hoshiarpur district and five are from districts of Ferozepur, Moga and Mansa, the home turf of Capt Amarinder Singh and former Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal. They both are equally guilty of nourishing drug mafia in the state.
Khaira said that the deaths happening due to drug overdose are more than the killings by terrorists during peak of militancy in the state. He wondered that Chief Minister and DGP Dinkar Gupta were not coming forward to save the precious lives of young children. He said that drug use in Punjab was on the rise and drug peddlers are having field day due to political patronage. Nothing has changed in Punjab with change in government, if earlier Akalis were minting money from drugs, now it is the turn of Congress leaders.
Khaira said that the deaths reported from various districts were not actual figure because many deaths go unreported due to social stigma and tendency in police to hide the figures. He alleged that Punjab government was fudging the data of drug users and deaths due to drug overdose. He said that the number of drug addicts in Punjab has risen many fold and the Punjab ministers shamelessly describing it an achievement of reaching out to more drug addicts.
Khaira said that SSP Ferozepur Sandeep Goyal has recently at a function accepted that there was black sheep in the police force involved in drug trade. The message of Goyal had gone viral on social media and appreciated by the people of state. He said that Goyal's speech was an eye opener and slap on the face of Congress government which is playing with the lives of poor people.
PEP president added that the de-addiction campaign in Punjab has failed completely since adequate staff is not posted in de-addiction centers and neither medicines are available. Drug addicts were treated like criminals by police whereas they needed a helping hand to bring them out. On the other hand, the synthetic drugs were being sold on streets and selective action is taken against the accused.