Executive Summary
- The village council of Nangal Kalan, Punjab, conducted its own raid on the homes of alleged drug dealers on Monday.
- The action was prompted by what the village sarpanch described as repeated and ignored requests for police to curb the local drug trade.
- During the search, residents reportedly found a digital weighing scale and habit-forming capsules at one location.
- Local police officials were either unavailable for comment or stated they would investigate the community’s claims.
The village council and residents of Nangal Kalan in Punjab’s Mansa district conducted their own search operation on Monday, targeting the homes of alleged drug peddlers. The action was taken in response to what community leaders describe as a persistent failure by local police to address the drug trade in their area.
Resham Singh, the sarpanch of Nangal Kalan, stated that the council had repeatedly appealed to police authorities for intervention. “We had requested the police and the authorities concerned several times in the past to make our village ‘chitta-free’,” Singh said. “We had even given them the names of drug suppliers… when nothing was done, we acted on our own.”
During the community-led search, a digital weighing scale and habit-forming capsules were reportedly found at one residence. According to Singh, the suspected dealer was not present, but his father assured the council that the illicit activities had ceased. The council has issued a warning of future penalties for those who continue to engage in the drug trade.
The move has been met with support from villagers, who contrasted the panchayat’s decisiveness with what they perceive as a lack of police action on the drug issue. Repeated attempts by news services to contact Mansa Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Butta Singh Gill for comment were unsuccessful. Another official, DSP Pritpal Singh, stated he would look into the matter.
This incident highlights growing frustration among some rural communities over the effectiveness of official law enforcement in combating the local drug epidemic. It is important to note that the individuals targeted in the raid have not been formally charged, and all persons are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.