Punjab Newsline | Chandigarh
Punjab is observing a statewide bandh on Wednesday to protest the killing of anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota in Mansa. The bandh has been called from 6 am to 5 pm, with essential emergency services, including hospitals, medical stores, fire brigades and ambulances, exempted.
Markets remained closed in several districts, including Ludhiana, Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Bathinda, Mansa, Jalandhar and Amritsar. Private schools and colleges were also shut in several cities, while government schools remained open.
In Bathinda, the farmer organisation Sidhupur blocked the Bathinda-Chandigarh highway, while shops in Dhobi Bazaar remained closed. In Ludhiana, protesters blocked traffic at Kohara Chowk on Chandigarh Road. Shops in Jalandhar’s Rainak Bazaar were shut, while markets in Amritsar also remained closed. Heavy police deployment was reported in Amritsar to maintain law and order.
The bandh comes in the wake of the killing of Parvinder Singh Jhota on October 13 in Mansa. He was allegedly shot dead by medical store owner Ashwini Kumar during a Facebook Live session after opposing the sale of drugs. The incident triggered widespread outrage, with demands for strict action against the accused.
Police have arrested Ashwini Kumar in Rajasthan. His house and medical store have also been demolished using bulldozers.
Meanwhile, Jhota’s father, Bhim Singh, has refused to accept his son’s body and demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the murder. The family’s demand for an independent investigation has become a key issue amid the protests across Punjab.
