Jakhar Writes to Shah Seeking NIA, ED Probe Into Punjab Jail Drug Tradeਜਾਖੜ ਨੇ ਸ਼ਾਹ ਨੂੰ ਪੱਤਰ ਲਿਖ ਕੇ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਜੇਲ੍ਹ ਨਸ਼ਾ ਤੰਤਰ ਦੀ ਐੱਨਆਈਏ, ਈਡੀ ਜਾਂਚ ਮੰਗੀ

Former Punjab BJP president Sunil Jakhar has written to Union Home Minister Amit Shah asking for a National Investigation Agency (NIA) probe into an alleged drug trade operating from inside Punjab's prisons, and an Enforcement Directorate (ED) investigation into the money laundering linked to it.

In his letter on Saturday, October 17, Jakhar centred his demand on the case of a drug inspector who served in Mansa and was arrested by Punjab Police in 2024. He said the arrest uncovered assets worth crores of rupees: Rs 7.09 crore held in 24 bank accounts, two bank lockers, Rs 1.49 crore in cash, 260 grams of gold, foreign currency and real estate worth Rs 2.40 crore.

What did Jakhar say about the drug inspector case?

Jakhar recalled that Punjab's Director General of Police had himself described the inspector as the kingpin of a gang involving jailed traffickers, allegedly facilitating the sale of drugs from behind bars. He argued that a network running from prisons, with cross-border trafficking links and property on this scale, was exactly the kind of case that warranted a money laundering investigation.

His sharpest charge was about what happened next. After the inspector, named in the letter as Sesam Kumar, was granted bail, Jakhar alleged, the AAP government not only reinstated him in service but gave him an important posting at his department's headquarters. He asked Shah to have the NIA and the ED establish at whose behest that posting was given, and to act against what he called a trade operating from prisons under government patronage. The allegations have not been independently established, and the state government had not responded to the letter at the time of reporting.

How does the letter connect to the Jhota killing?

Jakhar opened the letter by referring to the killing of anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota in Mansa, who was shot after opposing the sale of drugs. "I write to you with a heavy heart as the situation in Punjab continues to deteriorate because of drugs," he wrote, noting that the Home Ministry has already sought a response from Punjab's Chief Secretary on the incident.

The letter lands in the middle of an escalating Centre-state fight over drugs. Shah has publicly criticised the Mann government, the Home Ministry has sought reports on three recent cases, and Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal have hit back, arguing that drugs enter through BJP-ruled states and border zones controlled by central forces. Jakhar, who led the Punjab BJP until earlier this year, blamed the state government for neither seeking an NIA probe nor referring the inspector case to the ED despite its money laundering implications.

What has Jakhar asked the Home Minister to do?

He has asked Shah to hand the drug inspector case to the NIA and the ED so that the people behind the gang can be identified, the prison-based network can be acted against, and the associated money laundering can be uncovered. There has been no public response yet from the Home Ministry or the Punjab government.

Who is the drug inspector at the centre of the letter?

Jakhar named him as Sesam Kumar, a drug inspector who served in Mansa. Punjab Police arrested him in 2024 and, according to Jakhar's letter, recovered bank deposits, cash, gold, foreign currency and property worth crores. Jakhar alleged he was reinstated and given a headquarters posting after getting bail.

Has the Punjab government responded?

No response from the state government to Jakhar's letter had been reported at the time of publishing. The allegations in the letter remain unverified claims by an opposition leader.