Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann faces resignation demands from BJP and opposition after ASI Joga Singh is shot dead in Amritsar and inmates riot at Kapurthala Central Jail, raising fresh concerns over Punjab’s law and order.
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Punjab Police Assistant Sub-Inspector Joga Singh was shot dead by two unidentified bike-borne assailants on the Fatehgarh Churian-Majitha Road in Amritsar at around 6 am on Sunday. Singh, a resident of Ghaniye Ke Bangar village in Batala’s Gurdaspur district, was posted with the Traffic Wing of the Amritsar Police Commissionerate.
The two attackers intercepted his scooter about one kilometre before Majitha and opened fire at close range. Singh was hit by two bullets, one in the left side of the chest and another in the waist. He died on the spot before help could arrive.
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Senior police officials including SSP Suhail Qasim Mir rushed to the spot. The area was cordoned off, a forensic team was deployed, and empty bullet shells were recovered. Police also began examining CCTV footage from nearby areas. A search operation has been launched. The motive behind the attack is yet to be established.
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The ASI killing came a day after serious unrest inside Kapurthala Central Jail. On Saturday evening, inmates went on a rampage inside the prison and set Barrack No. 4 on fire. Gunshots were reportedly heard during the chaos. Firefighting teams were called in to douse the flames.
DIG of the Jalandhar Range, Naveen Singla, said around 100 to 150 inmates came out of their barracks, indulged in hooliganism, and set the barrack on fire. Police lobbed grenades and tear-gas shells to force the inmates back.
The unrest began after an argument involving a detainee, which escalated into a clash between inmates and undertrials. Prisoners allegedly turned on the jail infrastructure and staff. The Senior Superintendent of Police reached the prison and ordered an investigation. Additional security was deployed at entry points and movement inside the facility was restricted.
There are around 4,000 inmates in Kapurthala jail. The DIG confirmed the situation was brought under control, with one inmate suffering a tear gas injury and being admitted to a civil hospital.
The two incidents triggered sharp political attacks on Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, who also holds the Home portfolio.
BJP national general secretary Tarun Chugh described the killings and jail violence as examples of total administrative collapse. He demanded Mann’s resignation, saying the murder of a police employee on his way to duty exposed shocking insecurity across the state.
Chugh alleged that Punjab’s jails have become safe havens for organised crime, where extortion networks flourish, narcotics move freely, and gangsters continue operating from inside prisons.
BJP Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal also hit out at the Punjab government, alleging that law and order had completely collapsed and that Mann had abandoned his duties. She claimed inmates in Punjab jails were openly using mobile phones and receiving VIP facilities.
Leader of the Opposition in the Punjab Assembly, Partap Singh Bajwa, also sought Mann’s resignation, accusing him of failing to control the rising tide of organised crime in the state. He said the law and order situation had plummeted to an all-time low under Mann’s Home Ministry.
Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Badal described the overall situation as jungle raj.
As of Sunday, the Bhagwant Mann government had not issued a formal statement responding to demands for his resignation.
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