The death of 35-year-old Daljit Singh in Punjab’s Mansa district, allegedly due to drug overdose, triggered a confrontation between protesters and police on Monday, with opposition leaders launching a sharp attack on the Bhagwant Mann government over the handling of his body.
Family members and residents of Bhamme Kalan village, where Singh was from, were attempting to take his body to the site where protests against the killing of anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota in Mansa were taking place. Police allegedly blocked their route by parking vehicles and trucks on the road. The situation escalated at Ramditte Wala Chowk, where protesters accused the police of carrying out a lathicharge and taking Daljit Singh’s body into custody. Several protesters were detained and the incident triggered a political row over the state government’s handling of the drug crisis. Chaudhary clarified that the police would not perform Singh’s last rites and that further action would be taken only after obtaining the family’s consent.
Mansa Senior Superintendent of Police Vaibhav Chaudhary said the police had taken action after some elements allegedly attempted to disturb the law-and-order situation. Congress leader Raja Brar described the alleged police action as “shameful and inhuman” and accused the Mansa police of taking Daljit Singh’s body away from his grieving family. “Punjab’s drug crisis is claiming young lives, and now @mansa_police has snatched the body of 35-year-old Daljit Singh from his grieving family and fled with it,” Brar said in a social media post.
