Chandigarh, Oct 16 Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Kuldip Singh Gargajj on Friday accorded the status of a martyr of the Sikh community to Parvinder Singh Jhota, the anti-drug activist from Punjab’s Mansa who was earlier this week.
Giani Gargajj and Jathedar of Takht Sri Damdama Sahib Giani Tek Singh visited Mansa on Friday to meet the bereaved family and express their condolences.
During the visit, the Jathedar accorded Jhota the status of a martyr of the Sikh community.
Jhota, an anti-drug activist, was shot dead by a medical store owner at a busy market in Mansa on Tuesday. Ashwani Kumar, the store owner who fired at Jhota when he was being questioned for selling addictive drugs to an elderly man, was subsequently arrested.
Giani Gargajj offered an ‘ardas’ (Sikh prayer) in memory of Jhota. His father, Bhim Singh, other family members and the ‘sangat’ attended the prayer.
During the prayers, the Jathedar of Akal Takht, which is the supreme temporal seat of the Sikhs, said Punjab’s youth were falling victim to drug overdoses, while those raising their voices against drugs were also being killed by bullets.
Bhai Parvinder Singh Jhota, he said, had attained martyrdom while fighting against the drug menace.
He prayed to the Almighty to grant strength and success to the campaign against drugs initiated by Parvinder Singh, as well as the family’s ongoing struggle for justice and to dismantle the drug trade.
He also prayed that Hindus, Sikhs, Muslims and members of other communities living in Punjab be blessed with the courage and determination to unite against drugs, and that the Almighty protect the state’s youth.
The Jathedar affectionately embraced Jhota’s two sons and encouraged them to remain steadfast and in high spirits. He appealed to the Sikh community and the people of Punjab to extend maximum support to the bereaved family.
Paying honour to Jhota as a martyr, Jathedar Gargajj said he had other options in life but had chosen the path of sacrifice while fighting for the people and the youth.
The Jathedar said young people raising their voices against drugs were being targeted and killed.
“A person’s body can be destroyed, but not their ideology,” he said, adding that the self-respecting people of Punjab would strongly oppose such acts.
He said Sri Akal Takht Sahib endorsed the programmes to be announced by the committee formed to pursue justice for Jhota.
The Jathedar further warned against attempts by certain elements to project the incident as a conflict between Hindu and Sikh communities.
He said the issue was not a Hindu-Sikh conflict but a collective struggle by all communities in Punjab against drugs.
He asked the government to identify and take action against those attempting to create communal discord, asserting that communal provocation and polarisation would not be allowed to succeed in Punjab.
The Jathedar said the Punjab bandh observed on Wednesday had demonstrated that people from all communities stood together in the struggle against drugs.
He also stressed that the drug menace must be eradicated from its roots and said the responsibility rested with the government.
(PTI News)
