Mansa: After more than three weeks of waiting, the family of anti-drug activist Parvinder Jhota is set to perform his last rites in Mansa on Sunday. The post-mortem examination was completed at PGIMER, Chandigarh, on Saturday, following which the body was handed over to his relatives.
Gopal Sidhu, a representative of the Insaaf Action Committee, confirmed that the body would leave PGIMER for Mansa at around 5 am. Jhota’s father, Bhim Singh, said the family would first bring him home before carrying out the cremation between noon and 1 pm on Diwali.
The final rites were originally scheduled for Saturday at the family’s agricultural land on Chakerian Road. However, the ceremony had to be deferred because the medical examination could not take place on Friday. Officials reportedly required additional procedures because the body had remained at the Mansa Civil Hospital mortuary for over 20 days under specific temperature conditions.
The body was eventually shifted to Chandigarh in an ambulance late Thursday night. This followed the family’s decision to end its 22-day agitation after reaching an understanding with Punjab government representatives during a meeting on Wednesday.
Father urges youngsters to stay away from drugs
As preparations for the cremation continued, Bhim Singh appealed to Punjab’s youth to take a collective pledge against drug addiction. He also maintained his demand for the transfer of Mansa SSP Vaibhav Chaudhary and had announced plans to begin a hunger strike over the issue.
Jhota was killed on October 13 after being shot at a medical store in a busy Mansa marketplace. The incident reportedly occurred when he confronted the shopkeeper, Ashwini Kumar, over the alleged sale of addictive medicines to an elderly man. The shopkeeper was arrested following the shooting.
Government agrees to several demands
The killing led to a prolonged confrontation between the family, the Insaaf Action Committee and the state administration. Following the family’s demand, the Punjab government handed over the investigation to the CBI. Three officials — a station house officer, a deputy superintendent of police and a drug inspector — were also suspended in connection with the case.
The government agreed to several demands raised by the family, including a trauma centre named after Jhota, compensation for the four injured people and the installation of his statue at a park or stadium.
The agitation also saw the arrest of committee members Lakhvir Singh and Mohanjit Singh Sheron on October 28. Both were released from Nabha district jail on Thursday after negotiations involving Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan, Agriculture Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian and other government representatives.
The committee had additionally demanded the resignation of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and Punjab DGP Gaurav Yadav. With the post-mortem now completed and the body returned to the family, Mansa is preparing for Jhota’s final journey as demands for justice and action against drug-related activities continue.
