Sunil Jakhar Seeks NIA, ED Probes into Alleged Punjab Jail Drug Trade

Former BJP Punjab unit chief Sunil Jakhar on Saturday urged Union Home Minister Amit Shah to order a National Investigation Agency (NIA) probe into the alleged drug trade operating from Punjab’s prisons under government patronage. He also sought an Enforcement Directorate (ED) investigation into suspected money laundering linked to the drug trade, including a large sum seized from a drug inspector arrested on charges of selling drugs.
In a letter to Shah, Jakhar said the investigations were necessary to tackle the drug menace in Punjab, alleging that the Bhagwant Mann-led government had failed to curb the problem.
“These investigations are needed to save Punjab from the scourge of drugs, which the Bhagwant Mann government has miserably failed to curb,” he wrote.
Jakhar drew the Home Minister’s attention to a drug-related case from Mansa, where the Punjab Police arrested a drug inspector in 2024. The inspector had served in the district, and the investigation uncovered assets worth crores of rupees, including Rs 7.09 crore held in 24 bank accounts, two bank lockers, Rs 1.49 crore in cash, 260 gm of gold, foreign currency and real estate worth Rs 2.40 crore.
According to Jakhar, the Director General of Police had himself described the inspector as the kingpin of a gang involving jailed traffickers that facilitated the sale of drugs.
The BJP leader argued that the case warranted a money laundering investigation, citing the alleged drug network operating from prisons, cross-border links and movable and immovable assets worth crores of rupees. He maintained that the scale and nature of the case justified investigations by central agencies.
Jakhar alleged that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government led by Bhagwant Mann neither sought an NIA investigation nor referred the matter to the ED. He also claimed that after the drug inspector was granted bail, the state government reinstated him in service and assigned him an important posting at the department’s headquarters.
Jakhar’s appeal to Amit Shah seeks central agency intervention in the alleged links between drug trafficking, prison-based networks and suspected financial transactions in Punjab. The requested NIA and ED investigations, he said, are needed to examine the case and address the drug trade that he alleges the state government has failed to control.