New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi Wednesday lashed out at the AAP government in Punjab over the alleged suicide of a villager who questioned Finance Minister Harpal Cheema about the unabated supply of drugs, demanding that Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann should immediately get the minister to resign and ensure an impartial investigation.
The Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha further alleged that a “dangerous pattern” is emerging under the AAP government that if one questions failures, the response is in the form of threats and torture.
Gulzar Singh, a 47-year-old Dalit from Dirba in Sangrur district, died Monday night after allegedly consuming poison. His family said he questioned Cheema about the supply of drugs in the area during an event in Dirba the day before, September 6.
In a post in Hindi on X, Gandhi said, “A dangerous pattern is emerging under Punjab’s AAP government – if you question government’s failures, the response will come in the form of threats and torture.”
“Gulzar Singh ji, from the Dalit community, who had to watch his son fall victim to drugs, asked the Finance Minister just this much: why has the government failed so miserably in stopping the drug trade? For just this, he was tortured and humiliated so much, pressured so intensely to apologize, that he consumed poison,” Gandhi said.
Wandering from one hospital to another, without access to treatment, he ultimately lost the battle for his life, the former Congress chief said.
“Last week, I also spoke with a young Mohanjeet Singh, who was tortured for protesting against Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann,” Gandhi said.
The government’s job is to answer to the people, not to “trample upon” those who ask questions, he said.
“May Gulzar Singh ji’s family get justice as soon as possible. The Chief Minister should immediately demand the Finance Minister’s resignation and ensure an independent and impartial investigation, with his name registered in the FIR,” Gandhi stressed.
The Congress Tuesday had also demanded the sacking of Cheema, stating that he was responsible for his death.
Punjab’s drug crisis was at the centre of a snowballing debate with the BJP and Congress targeting the ruling AAP following the alleged suicide of Singh, who questioned Cheema about the unabated supply of ‘chitta’ in the state.
Following a complaint by Singh’s family, five people were booked under Section 108 (abetment of suicide) under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and relevant Sections of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, according to an FIR.
A purported video of his last moments shows the daily wager asking Cheema about the availability of drugs in his area, saying the sarpanch would be responsible for his death and admitting that his son took it too.
As his emotive video went viral, opposition parties, including the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), cornered the Bhagwant Mann-led government and demanded a probe. The issue rippled across to Delhi with calls for the resignations of Mann and Cheema coming in from the BJP and the Congress, both parties alleging that Singh was pressured into taking his life.
The death of Singh was not the only matter occupying mindspace in a political season hotting up ahead of elections due in the next few months.
The state government was also under attack over the alleged custodial torture of a villager, also from Sangrur, for waving black flags and raising slogans against the AAP regime on the issue of drug abuse.