Chandigarh, May 9: Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Monday categorically directed the police to launch a major crackdown on unscrupulous elements selling drugs, besides also tightening the noose around any political functionary interfering with its anti-drug campaign.
Chairing a high-level meeting of a Special Task Force team led by its chief Harpreet Sidhu at his official residence, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said neither political persons nor officials would be spared at any cost, if found conniving with drug mafia.
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He, however, asked the police officials to work freely without any political pressure with a sharpened focus to make Punjab a drug-free state. Without mincing any words, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said, “To my mind, some police officials might have been working earlier under certain compulsions, but all officials are not alike. However, few drug peddlers may be getting political patronage in the past, but now this shall not happen and all of you should work fearlessly in a direction to wipe out the slur of drugs from the state”.
Emphasising the need to break the supply chain of drugs, Bhagwant Mann asked the police officials to arrest those who are actually selling drugs not drug addicts as these persons have already become victims of drug mafia.
He claimed that with this initiative, the backbone of the supply chain would be broken and Punjab would soon become a drug-free state. He said this could not be accomplished without the wholehearted support of police force.
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Focusing his government’s priority on the rehabilitation of drug addicts after crackdown on drug smugglers, Bhagwant Mann underscored the need to bring all those back in the mainstream.
The Punjab Chief Minister further said his government would strive hard to run the drug de-addiction centres across the state efficaciously while ensuring there was no shortage of medicines.
He asked police officials to be vigilant while tackling the drug menace with heavy hand and should be aware who, where and what kind of drugs were being sold within their jurisdiction.
-PTC News