Khaira questions working of de-addiction centres in state
JALANDHAR: Punjab leader of opposition Sukhpal Singh Khaira raised questions over the working of de-addiction centres in the state on Sunday, citing that the doctors at these centres were doing a formality in the name of treatment.
The AAP leader was here at the Cantonment, to visit the family of Ricky Kumar, alias Laddi, 23, a ‘drug addict’ who died on Friday night while undergoing treatment of Hepatitis C and drug de-addiction at Punjab Institute of Medical Sciences, Jalandhar.
Taking to Laddi’s mother Lakshmi, who alleged that the staff at the centre gave sleeping pills and injections to her son whenever he got desperate for drugs, Khaira said the de-addiction centres should work properly as the addicts need special care.
“The way Laddi’s mother told me about the attitude of the staff of the de-addiction centre towards the addicts, it is very unfortunate and raises question on their working. Drug addicts need proper counselling and everything should run properly according to the course,” Khaira said.
Holding Punjab Police responsible for the rising death of youths due to drugs as they have “failed to tackle” the drug menace, Khaira said the government should compensate the families.
“Instead of big promises of curbing drug menace by conducting dope tests of government employees and announcing death sentence for drug smugglers, the Punjab government should focus on saving the youth,” he said.
Khaira termed dope test a political gimmick to divert the attention from the burning issue of alleged police-drug mafia nexus.
“Congress’s own MLA Rana Gurjeet Singh has termed dope test mere eyewash by saying that anyone can get a clean chit on the pretext of the test,” Khaira said.
Khaira said if the SAD had acted 10 years ago, hundreds of youths like Laddi could have been saved. “Akali Dal has no locus standi on the issue as they know that many of their own leaders are consuming opioids and hence they are not undergoing dope test with the fear that they will be exposed,” he said.