Dera Baba Nanak/Dhianpur: Uttar Pradesh Agriculture Minister Sardar Baldev Singh Aulakh said that pulling Punjab out of the grip of drugs is not merely a political issue, but a fight to protect Punjab’s youth, families and future. The strong response to the ‘Nasha Mukt Punjab Yatra’, he said, reflects the public demand for concrete and decisive action against drugs.
Addressing rallies organised by Jasdeep Singh Randhawa and Vijay Soni at Dera Baba Nanak and Kotli Surat Mallian, Sardar Aulakh said that before coming to power, the AAP had claimed that Punjab would be made drug-free within a few months. After four-and-a-half years, the government must answer for the gap between those promises and the situation on the ground. He said Punjab now needs sustained action against the entire drug-trafficking chain, not a politics of announcements and advertisements.
He said effective action against major traffickers, suppliers, financial networks and gang-linked networks is essential to tackle the drug trade. Police personnel are performing their duties, but they need administrative backing and an environment in which action can be taken without political pressure.
Sardar Aulakh said Punjab was once identified with sports, hard work, courage and prosperity. The fight against drugs must therefore be strengthened on both social and legal fronts so that Punjab’s youth can once again become a force for development.
He said that under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership and Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s resolve for a drug-free India, the BJP is raising the issue of drug prevention and enforcement in Punjab.
BJP National Vice President and former Minister Manpreet Singh Badal said drugs have caused enormous damage to generations of Punjab. He said the government that had guaranteed a drug-free Punjab within a few months must now answer for the results of its tenure. The destruction of Punjab’s youth, he said, cannot be stopped through statements and advertisements alone.
BJP State General Secretary Rajnish Dhiman said the fight against drugs should not target young people struggling with addiction, but the traffickers, suppliers and the entire network behind the trade. He said, “We cannot watch silently while someone poisons our children right before our eyes.”
BJP Punjab Vice President and Yatra Coordinator Sardar Ravikaran Singh Kahlon said a drug-free Punjab requires simultaneous action on three fronts: breaking the drug supply and trafficking chain, providing effective treatment and rehabilitation to victims, and creating employment, sports and healthy opportunities for the younger generation.
He said, “The youth must have employment, not drugs; dreams, not despair; and the rule of law, not the fear of drug traffickers.”
BJP Punjab Vice President Bibi Amanjot Kaur Ramuwalia said the ‘Nasha Mukt Punjab Yatra’ is becoming a voice for Punjab’s youth and families affected by drugs. She appealed to people to turn the fight against drugs into a wider social movement.
BJP District President Baghel Singh Bahia said Punjab’s youth must be protected from drugs and their energy channelled towards the progress of the state and the nation. He said breaking the drug-trafficking network is a central part of this effort.