Drug overdose? Punjab Police Academy constable loses battle of life

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, May 20

A 27-year-old constable of Maharaja Ranjit Singh Punjab Police Academy, Phillaur, who was reportedly admitted to DMC Hospital in Ludhiana after an alleged case of drug overdose died here on Friday. The critical condition of the cop, who was serving in the training institute, had led to the expose of a big time drug business thriving there. The cop remained on life support system for nearly a fortnight.

Meanwhile, the Jalandhar Rural Police have started focusing on the case. Phillaur police brought back two accused cops — Head Constable Shakti Kumar and water carrier Jai Ram — into their custody for two days from Kapurthala jail. Earlier, the police had failed to seek their remand from the court. SSP, Jalandhar Rural, Swapan Sharma said, “We have got the custody of both the cops who were engaged in supplying drugs in the academy and we will now interrogate them to get to the root of the problem and find out details about their complete nexus.”

The police had filed a revision petition against the May 10 order of the court of Shilpi Gupta, Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate, Phillaur, vide which the request of police remand of the accused had been declined.

The petition was heard in the court of Additional Sessions Judge, Jalandhar, Lalit Kumar Singla. Additional Public Prosecutor APS Dhillon for the state had contended that there were serious allegations regarding sale and supply of narcotics by the accused at the academy, so custodial interrogation was warranted to unearth the origin of the alleged contraband.

He had said that the investigation was at the very threshold and the prosecution needed to build up their case to know the origin of the contraband being supplied and the involvement of accomplices of the accused in the trade.

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