Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday visited the family of slain anti-drug activist Bikramjit Singh in Punjab’s Gurdaspur district, as he began a series of meetings with families of people who died in incidents linked to opposing drug trafficking in the state.
Forty-year-old Bikramjit Singh was attacked with a sharp weapon alongside two others in Pannawan village on October 15 after they allegedly objected to local drug peddling. He died at the scene, while the two other victims sustained serious injuries.
A video recording showed the Home Minister offering his condolences to Singh’s mother and speaking with other members of the grieving household during the visit.
Shah is scheduled to travel next to Sangrur district to meet the relatives of Gulzar Singh, a Dalit man who died by suicide on September 7. His family alleged that he consumed poison after facing harassment and casteist slurs for questioning Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema regarding drug availability in his area.
Following that visit, the Home Minister will head to Mansa to meet the family of Parvinder Singh Jhota, another anti-drug activist who was shot dead inside a medical store on October 13 while hosting a Facebook Live broadcast.
Jhota, who was well-known for his vocal stance against drug abuse and the unlawful distribution of addictive substances through chemist shops, had reportedly confronted medical store proprietor Ashwani Kumar for allegedly selling drugs to an elderly man. Kumar subsequently opened fire, killing the activist.