Another Punjab man attempts suicide over drug menace; Opposition jabs AAP

A man in Punjab’s Sangrur district allegedly consumed a poisonous substance outside the deputy commissioner’s office Sunday afternoon, claiming that he was assaulted after he raised the issue of alleged availability of drugs in his village.

This comes days after Gulzar Singh, a Dalit labourer, allegedly died by suicide after being threatened for questioning a Punjab Finance Minister, Harpal Singh Cheema, about rampant drug abuse. Jagseer Singh alias Jagga, a resident of Namol village, was initially taken to the Civil Hospital, Sangrur, and later shifted to Rajindra Medical College and Hospital, Patiala, where he is undergoing treatment.

Namol falls under the Sunam Assembly constituency of Sangrur, the home district of Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann. Earlier, Jagseer posted a video alleging that “chitta” or drugs were freely available near his house and sought action against those allegedly involved in supplying drugs.

In the latest video showing him allegedly consuming a poisonous substance, Jagseer says he had deleted the earlier video, but Sarpanch Sukhwinder Singh “Sukhi” Punia came to his house and assaulted him and his family. Jagseer says he consumed poison as he was “fed up with the system”.

His family has claimed that the CCTV cameras installed at Jagseer’s house were also damaged following the incident. The family also alleged that despite Jagseer raising the issue of drug availability, no action had been taken against the alleged drug supplier.

His friend Manjinder Singh reportedly recorded the video. Manjinder took Jagseer to the Civil Hospital, Sangrur, after which the police arrived and began collecting information about the incident. Yogesh Kumar, SHO, Cheema Police Station, said doctors at the Civil Hospital said Jagseer was out of danger.

“However, at the insistence of his family members, we referred him to Rajindra Medical Hospital. We have recorded his wife""s statement and will record Jagseer’s statement as well. We will take action accordingly,” Kumar said.

According to sources in the village, Jagseer and the sarpanch were involved in an altercation after he posted the video about the availability of drugs. A villager told The Indian Express that Jagseer fought with Sukhi, who later went to his house.

Sources in the village also claimed that Jagseer was involved in the smuggling of illegal liquor and selling drugs. Meanwhile, a group of villagers gathered in support of the sarpanch. They said that Jagseer has been named in at least seven to eight FIRs over his involvement in the sale of illegal liquor and drugs.

Police sources also said Jagseer had allegedly threatened to die by suicide in the past, following which they recorded a daily diary report (DDR). Namol has more than 5,000 voters, around 2,000 of whom are from the Scheduled Caste community, according to local estimates.

Earlier this month, a man from the Sheron village under the Sunam constituency, represented by Punjab AAP president Aman Arora, claimed he was brutally tortured in police custody after he allegedly showed a black flag and shouted slogans during Mann’s programme.

Shiromani Akali Dal leader Bikram Singh Majithia linked the incident to earlier cases involving people who had raised their voice against drugs in Sangrur. “In Sangrur, first Mohanjeet Sheron raised his voice against drugs, then Gulzar was forced to swallow poison, and now Jagsir has tried to embrace death by consuming a poisonous substance due to drugs, so that the sleeping Kumbhakarna-like Guru Dokhi could wake up!” Majithia said in a post on X.