Latest news with #YudhNasheyaVirudh
Time of India
2 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Dope test dare between AAP MLA, predecessor's brother ends in no-show
1 2 3 4 Bathinda: A heated social media exchange took place between between Iqbal Singh, brother of former Congress MLA from Dharamkot Sukhjit Singh Lohgarh, and AAP MLA Devinderjit Singh Ladi Dhos over the state govt's 'Yudh Nasheya Virudh' campaign. Earlier, in a social media post, Iqbal asked Ladi Dhos to urge the chief minister and health minister to establish a high-powered committee tasked with conducting dope tests on the MLA and the coordinators of the anti-drug campaign in Dharamkot. He said the findings of such a committee would validate the anti-drug drive. Responding to the challenge, Ladi Dhos announced via social media that he would visit Lohgarh village, which is home of the former Congress MLA on Sunday. He invited Iqbal to bring a team of doctors of his choice to ensure transparency and eliminate any doubts regarding the dope test results. As announced, the MLA reached Lohgarh village gurdwara on Sunday for his dope test, but no one was there from the other side. Ladi Dhos then made fresh allegations against the former MLA and his brother. "I went for the dope test and waited for over two hours for others to come, but nobody reached to conduct the test as I asked them to come with a team of doctors for the test. It seems they only wanted to attract attention by putting up a fake challenge," the MLA said. Stay updated with the latest local news from your city on Times of India (TOI). Check upcoming bank holidays , public holidays , and current gold rates and silver prices in your area.
Time of India
25-07-2025
- Time of India
‘Yudh Nasheya Virudh': DIG Bhullar rallies public support against drugs
1 2 3 Mohali: As part of the ongoing anti-drug campaign 'Yudh Nasheya Virudh', Ropar Range DIG Harcharan Singh Bhullar called upon citizens to actively support de-addiction and rehabilitation efforts to safeguard Punjab's youth from the grip of drugs. Addressing a public gathering at Gharuan on Friday, DIG Bhullar asserted, "No one will be allowed to destroy the future of Punjab's youth. We are committed to chief minister Bhagwant Singh Mann and DGP Gaurav Yadav's vision of a drug-free Punjab." He shared that over 23,000 arrests were made in the last 145 days under the campaign and stressed the need for public involvement to rebuild the confidence of drug-affected families. He urged people to refer such individuals to OOAT clinics and de-addiction centres, assuring full support from local SHOs. Senior superintendent of police (SSP) Harmandeep Singh Hans, also present at the gathering, urged the community to make full use of the Safe Punjab Anti-Drug Helpline – 97791-00200 (WhatsApp-based chatbot) to report drug trafficking or seek help for drug-dependent individuals. He assured that the identity of the informants would be kept strictly confidential. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Thousands in Wales Upgrading Homes for Free Wales Heating Grants Apply Now Undo SSP Hans also noted that the ongoing 'Nasha Mukti Yatras' played a key role in mobilising public support, with thousands taking pledges to neither use nor facilitate the use of drugs. Highlighting the success of ongoing Nasha Mukti Yatras, he appealed to Panchayats and residents to partner with police in this mission. Retired Wing Commander J S Minhas from Chandigarh University pledged campus-level awareness and action against drug abuse. The event saw participation from panchayat members and officials from Gharuan, Kurali, Kharar, Balongi, and Landran, including SPs Manpreet Singh and Mohit Aggarwal, DSP Karan Singh Sandhu, Prof Gurbakshish Singh Antal, and the local SHO.
The Wire
26-06-2025
- Politics
- The Wire
SAD leader Bikram Singh Majithia's Arrest in ‘Drug Money' Case Sparks Political Storm in Punjab
Jalandhar: The arrest of Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Bikram Singh Majithia by a team of Punjab vigilance bureau (VB) from his house in Amritsar on Wednesday, June 25, has led to a political storm in the state, bringing him, the scourge of drugs and Punjab politics around it into the spotlight once again. A raid by VB officials was also conducted at the leader's Chandigarh residence. Majithia, who was produced in the court on Thursday morning, was remanded to seven-day vigilance custody. His wife, Ganieve Kaur Majithia, is the sitting MLA from his home turf Majitha assembly constituency in Amritsar. In the videos of the raid that have surfaced on social media, purportedly filmed by her, Majithia is seen confronting the officials about their identity and questioning why they were not in uniform. An FIR was filed against the SAD leader under sections 13 (1) (b) and 13 (2) of The Prevention of Corruption Act, 2018, by the VB by assistant inspector general Swarandeep Singh, VB Bureau, Flying Squad-1, Punjab, SAS Nagar. Singh was recently reinstated after being suspended, along with another Punjab Police officer, in a driving license scam in May. Majithia's arrest comes in the backdrop of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-led Punjab government's ' Yudh Nasheya Virudh' (war against drugs) campaign launched on March 1, 2025, as part of which properties allegedly belonging to drug peddlers were razed using bulldozers. Majithia was among leaders in the opposition SAD and Congress who were targeting the AAP government for its failure to curb drugs. However, this time, the Delhi-based 'Saraya Industries', owned by his father Satyajit Singh Majithia, his elder brother Gurmeher Singh Majithia and Deepak Khajuria, came under the scanner. Punjab's drug menace Punjab's drugs menace has been a political and legal issue for over a decade. The first FIR in a notorious Rs 6,000-crore synthetic drugs case was lodged at Fatehgarh Sahib district in 2012. In 2014, the scandal led to a political storm when now-dismissed Punjab Police wrestler-cum-deputy superintendent of police (DSP) Jagdish Bhola, a prime accused in the scandal, named Majithia during a court hearing. As drugs remained a major political talking point in Punjab, both AAP and the Congress milked the issue for electoral gains. The AAP leaders, in particular, linked Majithia with drug trade. Irked by AAP leaders tarnishing his image, Majithia also filed a criminal defamation case against party supremo Arvind Kejriwal, Ashish Khetan and Sanjay Singh in 2016. In March 2018, both Kejriwal and Khetan had to retract their statements and submitted a written apology in the court. Meanwhile, Sanjay Singh is still fighting the case. Majithia, who is the brother-in-law of SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal was the revenue minister of Punjab, under the previous SAD-BJP government. Further, in the run up to the 2022 assembly elections, ex-chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi had lodged an FIR against him in December 2021. The VB's action is in connection with the same FIR from 2021, in which Majithia was sent to jail for three months. 'More big fish will be caught soon,' says Punjab CM A day after the arrest of Majithia, Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann held a press conference in the disproportionate assets case against Bikram Majithia and said, 'Till now, they were saying that we are not catching the big fish, now they are saying this is political vendetta. However big or politically influential a person may be, I am not going to have pity on anybody. Even if they are the president of any party, they will be brought to book.' Without naming Majithia, Mann said that his government acted with strong evidence in hand. 'All those who went to jail, around 80/90% of them could never get bail. Those who have a misconception that they have got the right 'contacts' to evade arrest, nothing will work. Here, the VB and Punjab Police will come and culprits will be punished. People were fed up with drug menace,' he said, adding that his government is fighting ' Yudh Nasheyan Virudh' and they were getting a thumping response from the villages. Mann also expressed fear during the press conference that there could be a threat to his life. ' Chahe wo mera bhi koi nuksan karna chahte ho (Even if they want to harm me), I will continue the war against drugs', he said. 30 mobile phones, five laptops, three ipads, two desktops and property documents seized In its statement on June 25, the VB stated that investigations by the SIT probing the December 2021 FIR, registered under section 25, 27-A and 29 of the NDPS Act, 1985, and the Vigilance Bureau, revealed massive laundering of drug money facilitated by Majithia. 'Preliminary investigations reveal that more than Rs 540 crores of drug money has been laundered through several ways, including huge unaccounted cash worth Rs 161 crores deposited in bank accounts of companies controlled by Bikram Singh Majithia, channelization of Rs 141 crores through suspected foreign entities, excess deposition of Rs 236 crores without disclosure/explanation in company financial statements, and acquisition of movable/immovable assets by Bikram Singh Majithia without any legitimate source of income,' the statement read. A VB spokesperson said that these transactions were being investigated by the bureau and the SIT probe also clearly indicated that these funds were used to launder drug money, funneled into 'Saraya Industries' and facilitated by Majithia. 'So far, Rs 540 crores drug money has been tracked as having been generated illegally and by using the influence of Bikram Singh Majithia as a public servant, being an MLA and holding a cabinet post in the erstwhile Punjab government. The assets, including both immovable/movable in the name of Bikram Singh Majithia and his wife Genieve Kaur have increased substantially for which no legitimate source of income has been provided,' the spokesperson said. According to the VB spokesperson, the SIT conducted searches and seizures of 22 persons and the VB raided three locations which yielded 30 mobile phones, five laptops, three ipads, two desktops, several diaries, many property documents and documents of Saraya Industries. The spokesperson added that Bikram Singh Majithia was arrested by the VB in accordance with law after following due procedure. 'Investigations are going on and more arrests, searches and seizures would take place. The investigation would be taken to its logical conclusion by submitting all collected evidence before the court of competent jurisdiction for judicial verdict,' the spokesperson added. SAD MLAs question arrest of Majithia Addressing a press conference on June 26, Thursday, senior SAD leaders Balwinder Singh Bhundar, Maheshinder Singh Grewal and party spokesperson Daljit Singh Cheema said that the AAP government had violated the law by registering a disproportionate assets case against senior leader Bikram Singh Majithia without holding either a preliminary or regular probe. They also accused the AAP government of indulging in political vendetta to gag Majithia as well as divert attention from the failure of its anti-drugs drive. They said that the Bhagwant Mann-led government was misleading Punjabis and committing contempt of court by saying that Majithia had been arrested in a Rs 540 crore drug case. 'This is not only absurd but a bundle of lies for which the AAP leaders will be held accountable,' said Maheshinder Grewal, adding that the government should tell why it has not released a single complaint with regard to the Rs 540 crore figure it had concocted in either the FIR or otherwise. Grewal noted that the public prosecutor said today that only a disproportionate assets case had been registered against Majithia. 'Even this is fabricated. The properties mentioned in the complaint were in the Majithia family even before Bikram Majithia was born. The Majithia family is an ancestrally rich family with Bikram Majithia's grandfather owning aircrafts and even a Rolls Royce car way back in the 1950s. It has also been wrongly imputed that Bikram Majithia was responsible for decision making in the Saraya Industries as he had resigned as a Director of the Company in 2007,' he added. Party spokesperson Daljeet Cheema said that the allegations made in the new case against Majithia were submitted to the Supreme Court also while seeking to cancel the bail given to the Akali leader in a NDPS case. 'The Supreme Court did not take cognisance of the allegations and now they have been recycled and turned into a new case,' he alleged. Cheema also said that an 'Emergency-like situation' was created at the Mohali court, as a heavy posse of police was deployed at all the gates, not allowing anybody to go inside. He thanked the opposition, especially Congress leader Sukhpal Khaira, who reached Majithia's house yesterday to express solidarity with him. Following Majithia's arrest, his sister and Bathinda MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal, and his brother-in-law, SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal, condemned the AAP government for witch hunt and termed it political vendetta. Harsimrat Kaur Badal pointed out that her brother was known for daring to expose the AAP government, whether it was the wrongdoings, or objectionable videos of its ministers. She reminded CM Mann that it was AAP national president Arvind Kejriwal who had sought a written apology from her brother. She challenged him saying, 'Even after a 1.5 years, when you [Mann] run away from the country, the SAD will bring you back to ensure justice to all.' AAP MLA also questions arrest Interestingly, AAP MLA from Amritsar North, Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh questioned the rationale of arresting Majithia now whereas he was already jailed for three months when an FIR was lodged against him by former CM Channi in 2021. 'I might have political differences but the Bhagwant Mann government did not seek remand or question him. Later, Mann government's officials provided him bail. The high court had granted bail on the grounds that if Majithia was not wanted for questioning, it was illegal to keep him in jail. However, now notices were being issued, raids were being conducted and the dignity of the women in the house was being violated. This is no longer about politics, it is about principles, ethics, and decency,' he said in a post on Facebook, showing possible signs of cracks within the party. Earlier, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president Harjinder Singh Dhami too had termed the arrest of Majithia as 'politically driven' by Punjab government's frustration and vindictiveness. 'If there was a need for investigation or questioning, proper legal procedures should have been followed,' he said.
Time of India
04-06-2025
- Time of India
Cops demolish house of notorious drug smuggler in Mohali
1 2 Panchkula: The police on Wednesday demolished an illegally constructed house belonging to a habitual drug smuggler in Chatauli Kalan village as part of the ongoing state-wide anti-drug campaign 'Yudh Nasheya Virudh'. The house, valued at approximately Rs 25 lakh and built on panchayat land, belonged to Dilpreet Singh, a repeat offender currently in judicial custody. He is involved in six criminal cases, including four under the NDPS Act, registered in Ropar and Mohali. Among these is a serious case registered at Sadar Kurali police station in 2022, involving the seizure of 445 grams of heroin. The demolition drive was jointly conducted by the Mohali Police and the rural development and panchayat department. It was led by DSP Mullanpur Mohit Aggarwal and SHO Sadar Kurali Gauravbans Singh, under the supervision of SSP Mohali Harmandeep Singh Hans. DSP Aggarwal said that illegal encroachment by the accused on government land behind the property was also halted. "This action sends a clear message to those profiting from the drug trade. The Punjab government has adopted a zero-tolerance policy," he said. Police have also initiated proceedings under Section 68-F of the NDPS Act, resulting in the attachment and freezing of two vehicles and one property identified as proceeds of drug trafficking. "Strong legal and financial action is being taken to break the backbone of drug networks," DSP Aggarwal said. SSP Harmandeep Singh Hans issued a stern warning to drug traffickers, stating that anyone found involved in drug-related activities will face severe consequences, including the seizure of illegal property. Local residents, along with sarpanch Gurpreet Singh, welcomed the move and praised the administration's firm stance. "This is a much-needed step and will deter others from engaging in such unlawful activities," the sarpanch said. Naib tehsildar Majri Rajveer Singh Marwah and block panchayat officer Mandeep Singh were also present during the operation. Mullanpur police sub-division has recently arrested 70 persons in connection with 40 FIRs related to narcotics. Several of these offenders have been referred to de-addiction and rehabilitation centres for treatment.
Time of India
01-06-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
AAP's anti-drug campaign is a series of missed deadlines: Cong
Ludhiana: Senior Congress leaders slammed the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann for failing to eliminate the drug menace in Punjab. Addressing a press conference here, Congress leaders said that CM Mann had changed the deadline for making Punjab drug-free at least four times, but failed. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Former chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi accused AAP of distributing alcohol, drugs, and money to win the Ludhiana West bypoll. Senior Congress leaders, including MLA from Kapurthala, Rana Gurjeet Singh, former minister Pargat Singh, Sunder Sham Arora, and former CM Charanjit Singh Channi, were in the city to attend the induction of an AAP leader in the Congress. Kapurthala MLA Rana Gurjeet Singh said, "In the year 2022, when AAP formed government in Punjab, both CM Bhagwant Mann and AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal assured that they would make Punjab drug-free. Then, on August 15, 2023, during the Independence Day function, CM Mann announced that he would make Punjab drug-free within one year. In April 2024, he again stated that Punjab would be drug-free by the end of December, 2024. " He added, that in October, 2023, the government took children to the Golden Temple to pray for a drug-free state. On February 28, CM Mann directed Punjab Police to eliminate the drug menace in three months. He also promised to open de-addiction centres in villages and form committees. "He must reveal what his government has done on the ground, apart from making false promises and giving 'tareekh pe tareekh' on the aim of making Punjab a drug-free state," Rana Gurjeet said. Accusing CM Mann and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal of using campaigns for publicity, former CM Channi said, "While the 'Yudh Nasheya Virudh' programme was on, at least 27 individuals lost their lives to spurious liquor. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now In another incident, three Ludhiana residents also died after consuming spurious liquor. Why don't CM Mann and the finance minister take responsibility for these deaths? While being in the opposition, Mann would always hold the CM responsible for each tragedy. Now, he must take responsibility for deaths of the people." Channi alleged that the ruling government was distributing drugs, liquor and money in Ludhiana West. "In fact, AAP's own MLA from Amritsar, Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh, has been saying that senior police officials are involved in running a drug nexus in Punjab. Why does Mann not listen to their own MLA? Even the demolition drive is an eyewash because the houses that are being demolished are illegally constructed; however, the authorities call it an action against drug peddlers," he said. The former CM asserted that drugs were being openly sold in Punjab and asked anyone who wanted to check to visit him. "I will show how drugs can be delivered just with a call," he maintained. Congress's Allegations: Missed Deadlines: CM Bhagwant Mann allegedly shifted the deadline for making Punjab drug-free multiple times—initially in 2022, then August 2023, April 2024, and again in February 2025. Lack of action: Congress leaders claim that despite promises, there has been little tangible progress, and the government has relied on symbolic gestures like prayers at the Golden Temple. Deaths from spurious liquor: At least 30 deaths were cited during the anti-drug campaign, raising questions about the effectiveness and sincerity of the efforts. Internal criticism: Even AAP's own MLA, Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh, has reportedly spoken out about police involvement in drug networks. Election malpractice allegations: Former CM Channi accused AAP of distributing drugs, liquor, and money during the Ludhiana West bypoll. MSID:: 121549770 413 |
