Centre seeks Punjab reports on three deaths linked to opposition to drugs

India’s Union home ministry has asked Punjab for reports on three deaths involving men who challenged drug activity.

The cases include anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota, who was shot dead in a pharmacy in Mansa, and two other men killed or dead by suicide after confronting drug-related issues.

Home Minister Amit Shah accused Punjab’s government of failing to curb drugs and organised crime, while Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said the Centre should take responsibility for drug seizures at Gujarat’s Kandla port.

AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal also blamed drug inflows through ports under central oversight.

The dispute comes as Punjab prepares for assembly elections due early next year, with parties making drugs a major campaign issue.

Punjab has launched a 60-day crackdown focused on 435 identified hotspots to dismantle drug networks.

Shah has also pledged that a BJP government would eliminate the state’s drug trade by December 31, 2029.