Senior farmer leader and Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) national spokesperson Rakesh Tikait on Saturday met the family of slain anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota in Mansa and appealed to his father, Bhim Singh, to allow the cremation. He also called for a people’s movement to rid Punjab of drugs, describing Jhota as the first martyr of the anti-drug campaign.“We are not so weak that we have to lodge a protest by keeping the body. The agitation and campaign will continue. We stand with the committee,” Tikait said while addressing protesters.He suggested that colleges and roads be named after Jhota, saying the activist’s campaign had made an impact not only in Punjab but also in Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.Addressing Jhota’s father, Tikait questioned the Centre’s role in tackling the drug menace, referring to Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s visit to Punjab to seek votes. “They are in power at the Centre and in several states. Have they been able to eradicate drugs there?” he asked.Tikait called for a larger gathering at the protest site and questioned whether the accused would have remained alive had the murder taken place in Uttar Pradesh.He alleged that the drug menace in Punjab was linked to the policies of the Central Government and accused it of contributing to the destruction of the Sikh community. He warned that Punjab would be ruined unless the government took strict action.“Jhota died fighting against drugs. We stand with his struggle. Drugs are routed through Gujarat and Nepal, but Punjab is left ruined and branded as a drug-infested state,” Tikait said.Questioning how narcotics continued to reach the market despite repeated seizures across the country, he referred to large consignments seized in Gujarat and asked what happened to the confiscated drugs and why the public was not being informed about their disposal.Tikait also called for stricter monitoring of factories manufacturing capsules and other medicines that could be misused as intoxicants. He said authorities should scrutinise licences, production volumes and supply chains, and shut down factories found involved in illegal activities.Stating that the drug menace was not confined to Punjab, Tikait said narcotics were also reaching Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. He added that the BKU supported the demands raised by the action committee in the Jhota case and called for strict action against those responsible for the activist’s death.Tikait also met Mohanjit Singh Sheron, who was allegedly thrashed by the police for showing a black flag during Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s visit to his village in Sangrur district last month.