Punjab: AAP govt's claim of success in drug war is misleading: Bajwa
Jun 22, 2025 06:42 AM IST
Senior Congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa on Saturday questioned whether the Aam Aadmi Party-led Punjab government had actually completed the first phase of its much-publicised 'Yudh Nashian Virudh' campaign and challenged its claims of successfully disrupting the state's drug supply chain. Senior Congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa said that while Punjab claimed progress against heroin, traffickers have already shifted focus to methamphetamine or ICE. (HT File)
Bajwa said the claims made by the AAP-govt that they have successfully disrupted the supply chain of drugs, primarily heroin, during the first phase of the three-month campaign that ended in May is 'highly misleading'. 'The drug network in Punjab remained intact, addiction continued unabated, and youth — including women — were still falling prey to drugs, with overdose deaths persisting across the state,' he alleged.
Bajwa further said that while the state claimed progress against heroin, traffickers have already shifted focus to methamphetamine or ICE, which was cheaper, more potent and easier to manufacture.
Accusing the AAP leadership of chasing publicity, Bajwa said that chief minister Bhagwant Mann and party supremo Arvind Kejriwal had failed to meet their deadline for a drug-free Punjab. 'It appears that they are in a rush to prove that their government has tackled the drug issue, while the ground reality remains alarming. They owe a public apology,' Bajwa added.
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