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The Economic Times
The Economic Times

"Drug fight should begin from Mundra Port, not Punjab": says AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal

New Delhi: Aam Aadmi Party national convenor Arvind Kejriwal on Monday said the fight against drugs should not begin from Punjab but from Gujarat's Mundra Port, as he reacted to BJP national president Nitin Nabin's remarks on the party's anti-drug campaign in Punjab.

"The fight against drugs should not begin from Punjab, but from Mundra Port. If you care even a tiny bit about Punjab, then stop the drugs coming from Gujarat," Kejriwal said in a post on X.

Kejriwal's remarks came after Nitin Nabin, while launching the BJP's 13-day 'Nasha Mukt Punjab Yatra' from Pathankot on September 18, said he had come with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's message to begin the campaign from the soil of Punjab.

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Nabin said the BJP's campaign would focus on tackling drug trafficking, disrupting interstate and international supply networks, confiscating assets allegedly generated through illicit drug money, rehabilitation of people affected by addiction and involving local communities in the fight against drugs.

The BJP's four anti-drug yatras are collectively scheduled to cover nearly 4,000 kilometres across all 117 Assembly constituencies in Punjab before culminating in Jalandhar on September 30.

The campaign has also triggered a political exchange between the BJP and the AAP over responsibility for tackling the drug menace in Punjab. The AAP has questioned the BJP's record on the issue, while the BJP has criticised the Bhagwant Mann-led government over its handling of the drug crisis.

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Kejriwal's latest remarks shift the focus to the alleged movement of narcotics through ports and drug supply networks, while Nabin's campaign has centred on action against trafficking and rehabilitation within Punjab.

The issue of drug abuse and trafficking has emerged as a major political issue in Punjab ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections, with the BJP, AAP and Congress putting forward different positions on responsibility and measures to tackle the problem.

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