Punjab Police facilitating drug racket in jails, alleges SAD

Chandigarh, Jul 6 (PTI) The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Monday alleged that the Punjab Police was facilitating a drug racket in state jails under political patronage and claimed that recent arrests of two jail officials in Hoshiarpur had exposed the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government's anti-drug campaign. The SAD RTI Cell alleged that the Hoshiarpur jail episode, in which two jail officials were arrested after an inmate allegedly exposed the racket through a live video, showed that prison officials themselves were involved in supplying drugs to inmates. It claimed that the incident reflected the "real face" of the AAP government's 'Yudh Nashean Virudh' campaign, alleging that the government had spent Rs 6.10 crore on its publicity in Ludhiana while drugs were allegedly being delivered to homes across the state. The SAD RTI Cell alleged that criminals had been given a free hand inside prisons, resulting in an increase in extortion and targeted killings in Punjab. Citing replies obtained under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, the RTI Cell also questioned the functioning of the state's anti-corruption helpline. It claimed that the helpline had received 5.33 lakh complaints between 2022 and 2026 but action had been taken in only 1,394 cases. The RTI reply also stated that only one person had been convicted and that no complaints had been received against any MLA or minister during the period. "The anti-corruption helpline is merely a sham, and the government has no intention of eliminating corruption despite its promises," the cell head, Sunny, alleged. In another claim based on RTI information, Sunny alleged that the Punjab government had spent crores of rupees on publicity boards across the country claiming it was developing 6,000 playgrounds in the state. However, he said the RTI reply revealed that the proposal for the playgrounds was announced during last year's budget session and was still under consideration. The SAD functionary alleged that the government was misusing public funds to create a false narrative about its achievements. PTI VSD KSS KSS