AMRITSAR: Amid growing concern over Punjab’s drug menace and the recent killing of Parminder Singh Jhota, who had opposed drug abuse, the officiating jathedar of Akal Takht, Giani Kuldip Singh Gargajj, has called upon Sikhs worldwide to hold congregations at gurdwaras on October 28 and pray for justice for Jhota’s family and the future of Punjab’s youth.The jathedar urged the Guru Khalsa Panth to organise prayers across India and abroad and asked all sections of society to extend maximum support to Jhota’s family in its fight for justice.Warning that drugs were eating away at Punjab’s younger generation like termites, Giani Gargajj said the consequences could be grave if governments failed to dismantle the supply chains of pharmaceutical drugs and networks involved in the distribution of synthetic narcotics. “If governments fail to dismantle the supply chains of pharmaceutical drugs and the networks dealing in synthetic drugs, the consequences for the youth could be extremely grave in the coming years,” he said.The issue, he said, required more than routine action against individual peddlers, with authorities needing to target the networks sustaining the trade.The officiating jathedar also called for a complete social boycott of those involved in selling drugs and demanded strict action against them.His appeal places responsibility on society as well as law enforcement agencies to isolate those profiting from addiction while ensuring that young people trapped in substance abuse receive opportunities to recover.While acknowledging that drug abuse was a global problem, the jathedar said the Sikh Gurus had prohibited intoxicants and taught Sikhs to lead truthful and disciplined lives in accordance with Gurmat, or Sikh teachings.He said young people battling addiction could turn their lives around through firm determination and by reconnecting with the Gurbani enshrined in Sri Guru Granth Sahib.Giani Gargajj also stressed that governments must take special measures to help addicts overcome dependence and reintegrate into mainstream society. Tackling the menace, he said, required both firm action against those supplying drugs and sustained efforts to help users recover.The October 28 congregations are intended to seek justice for Jhota’s family and draw collective attention to the threat drugs pose to Punjab’s next generation, he said.Pic: Officiating Jathedar of Akal Takht Giani Kuldip Singh Gargajj
