New Delhi, Oct 21 (PTI) The CBI has registered a case into the alleged murder of anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota in Punjab’s Mansa and taken over the investigation, officials said on Wednesday.
A team of CBI officials has already reached Punjab to probe all angles of the killing, they said, adding that the post-mortem will be done at PGIMER, Chandigarh, by a team of experts.
Inquest will be done by Magistrate at Chandigarh, the officials said.
According to the officials, Jhota’s family will be reaching Mansa Circuit House at 11.30 am today, where the CBI Team, led by a senior DIG, will be examining them.
The agency has formed a special team with experts, which reached Mansa last night and gave a formal requisition to the police to hand over the related documents, they said.
The team also comprises drug controllers, forensic and GST experts, they said.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann announced on Tuesday that the CBI will investigate the killing.
“We stand firmly with the father and the family of Parvinder Singh Jhota, who was fighting against drugs. Accepting the demand of the family, we are handing over this case to the CBI. Our fight against drug peddlers is all-out. We will not back down from whatever tough steps we have to take to make Punjab drug-free,” Mann said in a post on X in Punjabi.
Jhota’s family had been demanding a CBI probe into the murder.
Known for raising his voice against the illegal sale of addictive substances at chemist shops, Jhota was shot in broad daylight inside a medical store at a busy marketplace in Mansa on October 13.
Ashwani Kumar, the store owner who allegedly opened fire at Jhota after the activist questioned him for selling drugs to an elderly man, was taken into custody from Rajasthan’s Salasar.
The incident, which took place while Jhota was hosting a Facebook Live, triggered a political slugfest in Punjab, which goes to polls early next year.
Seven days after Jhota was shot dead, his post-mortem and cremation are yet to take place as his family members and supporters refuse to allow last rites until they get justice. PTI ABS NB
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