75-25 game between Badals and Channi over drug dealings: Raghav Chadha

Raghav Chadha, national spokesperson of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and co-in-charge of Punjab affairs, said that a political game is being played with the people instead of putting an end to the heinous business of drugs in Punjab state. He said that as the Punjab Legislative Assembly elections are approaching, the Charanjit Singh Channi government of the state has only pulled a political stunt by registering a weak FIR against Bikram Singh Majithia. In a press conference held at the party headquarters here on Sunday, Raghav Chadha said that the Congress government of Punjab, which had promised to end the drugs trade in Punjab within three weeks, did nothing in the last five years.

Now that the assembly elections are approaching, an unsuccessful attempt is being made to mislead the people of the state by registering an FIR against Akali Dal leader Bikram Singh Majithia. He said that the Aam Aadmi Party had already expressed apprehensions that under a 'secret deal' between the Channi government of Punjab and Sukhbir Singh Badal of Akali Dal Badal, it was decided that an FIR would be registered against Punjab's Akali leader Bikram Singh Majithia but, he will not be arrested. Raghav Chadha said that this is being done because when the brother of Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, who was involved in the Ludhiana City Center scam, was accused, Channi 'begged' before the Badal family to get his brother out of the case.

Raghav Chadha expressed surprise that despite an FIR and rejection of anticipatory bail against Bikram Majithia, he was not arrested. He said that it has been almost two weeks since the FIR was registered on December 20 last month. Majithia is roaming freely despite the denied anticipatory bail. Pictures of the accused offering prayers at Sri Harmandir Sahib on New Year, are going viral on social media. Despite the rejection of anticipatory bail, the Punjab government is not arresting Bikram Singh Majithia. Raghav Chadha said that a Standard Operation Procedure (SOP) is applicable in the whole country that the accused is arrested immediately after the cancellation of anticipatory bail, but this is not being done in the case of Bikram Singh Majithia in Punjab.

He said that this substantiates a direct nexus between Channi and Badal. He said that Channi's government has tried to mislead the people of Punjab by registering a weak FIR against Majithia. Raghav Chadha told that he has been told by a senior police officer in Punjab that the Channi government has asked only to register an FIR against Majithia and not to arrest him. Raghav Chadha said that Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi and Sukhbir Singh Badal have complete complicity in drug trade. A game of 75 -25 is going on in the drugs business, Channi himself is involved with the sand mining mafia of Punjab. He questioned the Channi government as to what the Punjab government, which claimed to end the drugs trade in Punjab, had done in the last 100 days of its tenure. Raghav Chadha said that Channi should name even one place where drug circulation has reduced or ended.

He said that even today intoxication is being injected into the veins of the youth of Punjab. The Punjab government has not arrested a single drug dealer till date and now with the elections approaching, they have tried to mislead the people of the state by registering a 'weak' FIR against Bikram Singh Majithia. Raghav Chadha said that the drugs trade will be ceased in Punjab on the priority basis with the formation of the Aam Aadmi Party government here. He further added that in order to shape the future of the youth of Punjab who are addicted to drugs, they will be brought out of the quagmire of drugs by providing all the help they’ll need.