Chandigarh, October 3: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has castigated the Captain Aamrinder Singh government on the menace of drugs, saying it had spread its wings in the state. It said the government had failed to stamp out the menace effectively, thus giving a free hand to the mighty drug ‘mafia’ to call the shots at will, which, it said, was a cause of grave concern.
In a statement jointly issued from party headquarters on Thursday, senior leader of the party and leader of opposition (LoP), Harpal Singh Cheema, core committee member Kuldip Singh Dhaliwal, said that during the past 15 days, police parties had been attacked by the drug ‘mafia’ in the Majha area only, saying the ghastly incident that took place at Tarn Taran bypass in the recent past killing a police ‘jawan’, was the latest in the series of happenings across the state.
Cheema further said that prior to this, yet another incident, a police officer was ruthlessly beaten up by the drug ‘mafia’, which was reflective of how the police force had been working under immense pressure while the drug lords were unfazed. The AAP leader said that Captain Amarinder Singh, who also held Home portfolio, had backtracked on taming the drug ‘mafia’, leaving teeming millions of youth in the state hooked to drugs.
Cheema said that Captain Amarinder Singh, who had taken a solemn vow under oath of sri ‘gutka’ sahib to stamp out the menace of drugs four weeks after assuming power, had failed to do so, saying the drug ‘mafia’ had been indulging in the nefarious activity by orchestrating attacks on the police force without the scantest fear of the law of the land. The AAP leader demanded that Captain should resign as Home Minister of the state and let a competent hand to do justice to the sensitive portfolio.
Kuldip Singh Dhaliwal, on the occasion, demanded the government should immediately release an ex-gratia payment of Rs one crore to the next of kin of the slain cop, Havildar Gurdip Singh, who was ‘martyred’ by the drug lords and government job to a member of the family.
