Family of Daljit Singh Forced Out of Home, Says Harsimrat Badal

Chandigarh, October 29: Shiromani Akali Dal leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal has claimed that the family of Daljit Singh has been forced out of its home amid alleged intimidation by the Punjab Police. Badal met the family in Bhamme Kalan village of Mansa district and went on to question the conduct of the state police and the ruling AAP government.

In a post on X accompanied by a video, Badal said that Parmjit Kaur, the wife of Daljit Singh, had informed her that the police were pressing her to sign a paper. Parmjit Kaur reportedly said that after she refused, the police kept calling her and her 14-year-old son to the station again and again.

Badal laid out her charges in five points. She said law and order in Mansa and the wider state was in a poor condition, and that police had taken Daljit Singh's body into their custody in broad daylight. She also said that the police were pressuring the widow to alter her statement and that family members were being tormented. Information about more than 20 people detained from the village was still unavailable, she added.

According to Badal, the police were also harassing Daljit Singh's parents, sister, wife and children. In a second post, she said the family was living in a climate of heavy pressure and fear, and that it had been left with no choice but to move out of its house and seek refuge at a protest site.

Quoting Daljit Singh's sister, Amarjit Kaur, Badal said the family had alleged that the administration first tried to calm the situation and even offered a job and financial assistance, but the family turned it down.

Badal targeted Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and the state government, insisting that the police must protect the public rather than frighten them. She alleged that drug traffickers had earlier enjoyed state patronage and that confusion was later created around Daljit Singh's death. She said the family believes he died of a drug overdose, while the administration is attempting to describe it as a murder.

Badal further alleged that Daljit Singh's father is missing and that the women of the family are facing sustained police pressure.