Chandigarh, June 26 || A day after the Vigilance Bureau arrested Akali Dal leader Bikram Singh Majithia on charges of laundering more than Rs 540-crore drug money, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Thursday said after action against small-time drug smugglers, “it is now the turn of the big players to face consequences”.
The Chief Minister reiterated the government’s policy of zero tolerance toward drugs and the powerful individuals who have either patronised or participated in the illicit trade.
He said while small smugglers acted as distributors, the real kingpins, who operated an extensive network, had long evaded accountability. “Now, their time is up,” CM Mann told the media here.
“No matter how influential they are, those involved in the drug trade will not be spared,” he said.
The Chief Minister emphasised that the government has already jailed many area-specific, small-scale smugglers. “The Aam Aadmi Party had guaranteed that the perpetrators of this heinous crime would be brought to justice. That promise is being fulfilled,” he said, adding that the ongoing crackdown has broken the backbone of the drug cartel.
CM Mann said substantial evidence has been collected against those arrested, including records of significant hawala transactions, which he said would serve as “the final nail in their coffin”.