AAP govt behind state’s drug problem, says Sarin

Days after Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MP Malvinder Singh Kang accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of supporting drug suppliers, BJP state general secretary Anil Sarin and district president Rajneesh Dhiman held a press conference at Shahanshah Palace on Monday, claiming that if the drug problem in Punjab persisted, the AAP government was to blame.

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They alleged that AAP leaders were hand-in-glove with drug suppliers, and that is why, despite tall claims of a “war against drugs,” not a single major drug supplier had been arrested so far.

Addressing mediapersons, Sarin stated that the allegations made by Kang against the BJP were baseless, as the individual caught with 5 grams of heroin had only been identified by a single person. Yet AAP leaders used it for political propaganda, accusing the BJP of shielding drug peddlers, he added.

Sarin added that on May 28, Ajnala police arrested two persons with 50 grams of heroin — a quantity considered commercial under law. Shockingly, AAP Cabinet Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal personally went to the police station to “assist” the accused. He further alleged that Dhaliwal posted on social media that since the boys were young, he had ordered the police to send them to a de-addiction centre instead of jail.

Sarin questioned the AAP leadership, asking under what authority a minister, against whom an FIR had already been filed, could direct the police to send an accused to a rehabilitation centre. Sarin demanded the resignation of Dhaliwal for his interference in police work.

SC morcha leaders protest

BJP National SC Morcha general secretary Sanjay Nirmal and BJP Punjab SC Morcha president SR Ladhar, along with BJP workers from various parts of the state, staged a silent protest near the statue of Dr BR Ambedkar outside the DC office in Ludhiana.

The protest was held against the repeated incidents of disrespect and desecration of Dr Ambedkar’s statues across Punjab.

Nirmal said the Punjab Government was shedding crocodile tears by displaying pictures of Dr Ambedkar in government offices, while in reality, Punjab — the state with the highest SC population in India — was witnessing disrespect of Ambedkar’s legacy.

SR Ladhar appealed to the SC community to expose the anti-Dalit policies of the Aam Aadmi Party. Later, a memorandum of demands was submitted to ADC Rohit Gupta on behalf of the protestors.