Punjab AAP Ministers Dismiss BJP Anti-Drug Push as Political Theater

Ministers Aman Arora, Harpal Singh Cheema, and Harbhajan Singh ETO centered the event on the legacy of the revolutionary leader, urging the youth to embody his vision. However, the rhetoric quickly shifted toward the BJP’s Nasha Mukt Punjab Yatra, which began on September 18. Arora specifically linked the emergence of synthetic drugs in the state to the 2007–2017 period, accusing the BJP and its former allies of historical complicity in the crisis. He characterized the current 13-day yatra as a performance of crocodile tears, asserting that citizens have already identified the political motives behind the 4,000-kilometer campaign.

Harbhajan Singh ETO echoed these sentiments, questioning the sincerity of a movement led by those he claims are responsible for the drug influx. The political friction arrives as both parties position themselves ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections, using the drug issue as a primary battleground for public trust. While the BJP's campaign is set to conclude on September 30 in Jalandhar with a rally featuring Union Home Minister Amit Shah, the AAP leadership maintains that such efforts hold no weight with the Punjab electorate, framing their own Jashn-e-Inquilab as the true reflection of the state's revolutionary spirit.