Punjab revamps SIT, engaged in Bikram Singh Majithia’s drug case

The Punjab government has reshuffled the Special Investigation Team (SIT) assigned to probe a narcotics case involving Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader, Bikram Singh Majithia, a former minister charged under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act on December 20, 2021.

Now leading the SIT is Mukhwinder Singh Chhina, Inspector General of Police (Patiala range), replacing Rahul S, Director of Vigilance Bureau, as stated in an official directive. Rahul S’s extensive oversight of numerous corruption cases within the Vigilance Bureau necessitated the reconstitution of the SIT, as per the official statement. The realignment is intended to ensure dedicated focus on this critical drug case. The remaining SIT members, Assistant Inspector General Ranjit Singh Dhillon, and Deputy Superintendents of Police (DSPs) Raghbir Singh and Amarpreet Singh, will maintain their roles.

The SIT was initially established by the former Congress government led by Charanjit Singh Channi, with AIG Balraj Singh at the helm. Following the Aam Aadmi Party’s rise to power in March 2022, the SIT was reformed under the supervision of Inspector General of Police Gursharan Singh Sandhu.

Majithia’s charges stemmed from a 2018 anti-drug special task force (STF) report on a drug network within the state. The case was officially registered by the state Crime Branch at its Mohali police station. In August of last year, Majithia secured bail from the Punjab and Haryana High Court, following a jail term of over five months in relation to the drug case.