Punjab man, who questioned minister over drug menace, dies after consuming poison

A day after publicly questioning Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema over the easy availability of heroin in the state, a daily wager from Sangrur allegedly consumed poison, alleging that his son had become addicted to the drug, and later died at Dayanand Medical College and Hospital (DMCH), Ludhiana, on Monday.

In a video recorded before his death, Gulzar Singh, 47, who claimed to be unemployed, alleged, ”Finance Minister Cheema had visited the village on Sunday to hear public grievances, where I raised the issue of the easy availability of ‘chitta’ (heroin).

My son is addicted to drugs and has sold household belongings to sustain his addiction”. The police on Tuesday registered a case against village sarpanch Baljinder Kaur, her husband Baljinder Singh alias Raj, and a panchayat member, Vicky Singh.

The incident has once again put Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann's native district Sangrur at the centre of a controversy. On September 2, a man was allegedly tortured in police custody for showing a black flag to CM Mann and raising slogans questioning the government’s claims on tackling the drug menace while he was addressing the masses in a village in Sangrur district.

According to reports, Gulzar Singh allegedly got frightened after he was threatened to visit the sarpanch and consumed the poisonous substance instead of going to meet the panchayat members. The incident has also raised questions over the availability of emergency medical facilities in Punjab's government hospitals.

According to reports, Gulzar was initially taken to the Civil Hospital in Sangrur, from where he was referred to Rajindra Hospital, Patiala. As his condition deteriorated, he was brought back to Sangrur and admitted to a private hospital before finally being shifted to DMCH, Ludhiana, where he died late on Monday.

BJP local leader Daaman Bajwa alleged that almost seven hours were taken to shift Gulzar from one hospital to another. “It is shocking that government hospitals in Punjab did not have adequate arrangements to treat a patient who had consumed poison.

Perhaps his life could have been saved had he received timely treatment,” Bajwa said. ‘I’d asked police to take appropriate action’ Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema, while talking to The Indian Express, however, denied any role in the circumstances that allegedly led Gulzar to consume poison.

“Yes, I went to Toor Banzara village on Sunday as I regularly meet people in my constituency. Gulzar Singh raised the issue of drug availability and told me that his son was a drug addict. I listened to his grievance and even asked the police to take appropriate action against those involved in the supply of drugs,” Cheema said.

“I do not know what happened on Monday or under what circumstances he consumed poison. It is a matter of serious investigation. The police are looking into it, and action will be taken against anyone found guilty as per law,” he added.

Responding to allegations that Gulzar was threatened, Cheema said the Opposition was trying to create a “wrong narrative”. “The man questioned me, and I listened to him. It is unfortunate that he lost his life,” the finance minister said.

It is also learnt that the Sangrur police had visited Gulzar's house on Monday to take his son to a de-addiction centre. Meanwhile, Rupinder Kaur Bajwa, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Dirba, said Gulzar’s death is a case of suicide.

“We will take action based on the statement of the family,” she said. The DSP, however, said that the police had not received any statement from the family linking Gulzar's death to the incident where he questioned the finance minister or the alleged threats that followed.

A few months ago, Gulzar’s relative, also a drug addict, had died.