His eyes have the look of a man who has nothing to look up to. Tears rolling down her cheeks, his wife’s eyes seem to be asking several questions — questions that are uncomfortable and put the powers that be in the dock.
Jora Singh (70) and Gurmail Kaur (65), of Bhaloor village in Moga, are mourning the loss of their younger son Manpreet Singh (37) to drug overdose. Seven years ago, they had mourned the death of Manpreet’s elder brother Gurpreet Singh, who too had died of chitta (heroin) overdose. Not too long ago, the couple had last year mourned the death of Jagjit Singh, Jora’s nephew and also a victim of drug overdose.
“Hatth bann benti hai, jehda eh Punjab ch chitta chaleya hai, eh band kitta jaave. Saade tinn munde issi jhaak ch mar gaye hai, hun saada koi waali waaris nahi (I plead with folded hands. Please stop the sale of heroin in Punjab. I have lost my three sons to this. No, we don’t have anyone left to take care of us),” said Jora Singh, trying to hold back tears.
Gurmail Kaur says that Manpreet had been a drug addict from past 6-7 years. “On Friday (August 25), he had consumed chitta and started feeling unwell. He soon collapsed and we rushed him to hospital,” said the wailing mother.
He was admitted to Guru Gobind Singh Government Medical College and Hospital, Faridkot, but could not be saved. Police said that a communication from the medical college said that Manpreet died of drug overdose.
Manpreet, according to his mother, had sold everything of any value that they had a their house in the past one year to feed his addiction. “Tractor, bed, bike, wheat bags, utensils… he did not leave anything. He sold everything to buy drugs,” said Gurmail Kaur.
Manpreet, incidentally took to drugs soon after Gurpreet, who was three years elder to him, died after overdosing on chitta. “Gurpreet too was an addict and used to take money from us forcibly. After his death, Manpreet took to chitta,” she added.
Last year, Jora Singh’s brother’s son Jagjit Singh also died of overdose. “He (Jagjit) was injecting himself in a washroom but ended up overdosing. He could not even take out the syringe and died on the spot,” said Pala Singh, the village sarpanch.
Gurmail Kaur said that while Gurpreet left behind four daughters, Manpreet is survived by a son. “Who will take care of these innocent children now? My husband is too old to work. No one is left in family…Chitta has eaten into the roots of our family,” she said, her sons had also taken debt to buy drugs. “We are in position to repay it now. We have lost three sons of our family to chitta. Koi sarkaar kuch nahi kardi (No government does anything)”.
“Those who say that drugs have stopped in Punjab or that their sale and consumption has scaled down, should visit the villages.
There is no fear now. The drugs are being sold in every nook and corner and those who stop them (drug peddlers) are thrashed, intimidated, and even killed. They roam around on two-wheelers and in cars supplying drugs to the youngsters in the villages. There have been at least 15 such deaths in our village due to drugs in the past five years,” said sarpanch Pala Singh.
Moga police arrested siblings Karanvir Kaur and Gurpreet Singh for allegedly selling heroin to Manpreet. Sub-inspector Jaswinder Singh, SHO Smalsar police station said that an FIR against the sister-brother duo was registered under Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and 21 of the NDPS Act. “The doctors at Faridkot medical college confirmed that Manpreet Singh died to drug overdose. According to probe, he had got drugs from the siblings who also live in the same village and sell chitta. We have recovered 5 gram heroin and Rs 25,000 drug money from them,” said the SHO.
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While welcoming the arrests, the sarpanch, who recently met Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann to raise increasing drug problem issue in his village, asked, “Can government tell that where this elderly couple and wives and children of both deceased should go now? Who will feed them?”
Jora Singh, a small farmer with just 1.5 acres of land which too was mortgaged by his son, has now urged the government to waive off their debt and help them financially so that they could educate and raise their grandchildren.
“We urge Bhagwant Mann to stop this chitta in Punjab which is eating family after family. Saanu maadi modi sahaita ditti jaave. Hun koi nahi kamaun wala (Please give us some help. We don’t have anyone left to earn now),” said Jora Singh, in an appeal to Mann.