Sukhpal Singh Khaira Arrested by Punjab Police in Old NDPS Case
In a shocking turn of events, Congress leader and Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) Sukhpal Singh Khaira was apprehended by Punjab police in connection with an old case filed under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. The arrest took place following a raid at Khaira’s residence in Chandigarh, led by Superintendent of Police Manjeet Singh and Deputy Superintendent of Police AR Sharma, at approximately 6:30 AM.
The dramatic arrest unfolded in real time as Khaira went live on Facebook during the police operation. In the live video, he can be seen engaging in a heated argument with the officers and demanding a warrant for his arrest. The police, on the other hand, asserted that Khaira was being apprehended based on the recommendation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT), headed by a DIG rank officer, and two Senior Superintendents of Police (SSPs). They cited an old NDPS case as the reason for his arrest.
However, Khaira vehemently contested the police action, claiming that the case had already been quashed by the Supreme Court. This added a layer of complexity to the situation and raised questions about the legality of his arrest.
In response to this arrest, Punjab Congress President Amarinder Singh Raja Warring criticized the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, describing it as a “political vendetta” aimed at silencing opposition voices. He took to social media, saying, “The recent arrest of @INCPunjab MLA @SukhpalKhaira ji smacks of Political Vendetta, it is an attempt to intimidate the opposition and is a ploy of the @AAPPunjab govt to distract from core issues. We stand strongly with Sukhpal Khaira and will take this fight to its logical conclusion.”
The roots of this case trace back to March 2015 when the police registered an FIR under the NDPS Act. Subsequently, nine individuals were convicted in 2017 after law enforcement officials recovered two kilograms of heroin, 24 gold biscuits, a country-made pistol, and two Pakistani SIM cards from them. As the investigation continued, Sukhpal Singh Khaira’s name emerged as an additional accused.
In 2021, Khaira faced arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on charges of money laundering related to the same FIR for which he was arrested today. However, in 2022, the court granted him bail in this matter.
The situation took a significant turn on February 16, 2023, when a Supreme Court bench consisting of Justices BR Gavai and Vikram Nath quashed the summoning order against Khaira in the drugs case. This development has added further intrigue to the unfolding events.
As this case continues to evolve, it has captured the attention of the public, and political reactions are mounting. The legality of Khaira’s arrest and the alleged political motivations behind it remain topics of intense debate, underscoring the complex intersection of law, politics, and justice in the region.