Mansa: The killing of anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh, popularly known as Jhota, has brought a three-year-old dispute involving the suspected assailant, Ashwani Kumar, back into focus. In July 2023, Jhota and his associates had allegedly paraded Kumar through a market with a garland of shoes over suspicions of selling intoxicating substances.
According to reports and a video from the time, Jhota and his supporters had confronted a man suspected of selling prohibited capsules and followed him to a medical store from where he allegedly obtained the substances. They claimed to have found banned drugs at the shop and subsequently took Kumar to the police station to file a complaint.
An FIR was reportedly registered against Kumar on the basis of Jhota’s complaint. However, after videos of the incident circulated on social media, police also registered a case against Jhota and his associates for allegedly taking the law into their own hands.
The 2023 incident has resurfaced following Tuesday’s fatal shooting at a medical store in Mansa, in which Kumar has been accused. The allegations against him remain subject to investigation.
Police promise action within 24 hours
Mansa Senior Superintendent of Police Vaibhav Chaudhary described Jhota’s killing as tragic and said the deceased was a social worker. He assured that the accused would be arrested within 24 hours, adding that police were investigating whether the weapon used in the crime was legally licensed.
Following the shooting, a large number of Jhota’s supporters gathered at the Civil Hospital and raised slogans against the police. Security personnel were deployed in significant numbers to maintain law and order.
Father refuses cremation until justice is delivered
Jhota’s father said the family would not cremate his son until justice was delivered. He also called for the Punjab government’s dismissal and appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to take notice of the situation in the state.
The family and supporters have continued their protest, with demonstrators staging a sit-in at Gurdwara Chowk in Mansa. The killing has intensified public anger and renewed debate over drug-related crime and the safety of anti-drug activists in Punjab.
