ED ex-officer Niranjan visits drug-hit Bathinda village, says state failed to act

Former Enforcement Directorate (ED) Deputy Director Niranjan Singh, who had probed a drug racket involving dismissed Punjab Police DSP Jagdish Bhola, on Saturday visited Bathinda’s Maur Kalan where residents had recently flagged rampant sale of heroin.

The Tribune had published a report on Monday, “Heroin openly sold here: Bathinda villagers paint message for admn”, highlighting graffiti painted by residents on village walls, pointing towards houses of drug sellers.

Acting on the report, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had taken suo motu cognisance of the incident and sought a detailed affidavit from the state government.

During his visit, Niranjan Singh said recoveries of “three, five or 10 grams of heroin” were merely eyewash. “There appears to be involvement of lower-level police officers, which the state has failed to check. Strong grassroots-level surveillance is necessary,” he said.

Niranjan added that residents of Maur Kalan had been repeatedly urging him to visit the village. The former ED officer claimed that he had earlier visited Bhai Bakhtaur and Dan Singhwala villages in the district, where the situation was equally grim.

“A number of residents of Maur Kalan village today informed me that 10 youngsters have lost their lives due to drugs from this village alone. They also complained of the police not acting against those being named by them,” said Niranjan.

Bathinda SSP Amneet Kondal has, however, repeatedly said that they were not just acting against drug peddlers but also sending the addicts to de-addiction centres and outpatient opioid assisted treatment (OOAT) centres for treatment.