Bathinda: Live on Facebook and in front of scores of witnesses, anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota was shot dead by a chemist he suspected of selling ‘chitta’ (synthetic drugs) in Punjab’s Mansa town on Monday morning. Four persons suffered bullet injuries.The brazen murder was caught on CCTV and multiple cameras. Pistol in hand, the accused, Ashwani Kumar, followed Jhota as he staggered out into the street and took refuge in a shop. The gunman walked behind him and shot him again and again. Jhota was struck by three bullets. His dying agony was also caught on camera. His magazine empty (video footage shows the slider locked back), Kumar then walked back to his shop before fleeing the scene. Police have detained a cousin for allegedly helping him escape.Jhota’s father Bhim Singh, an ex-Armyman, has refused to cremate him until the killer is caught and vowed to continue the fight his braveheart son started. Anger over the murder led to a complete business shutdown in Mansa and protesters blocked Barnala-Sirsa Road. A large crowd gathered at Mansa Civil Hospital and had a showdown with police as they insisted on taking Jhota’s body to the protest site.Bathinda DIG Harjit Singh said the murder was out of personal enmity, and promised to have the accused in custody within 24 hours.The public killing of an anti-drugs campaigner triggered a major political backlash against Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) govt. State finance minister Harpal Singh Cheema and AAP Punjab president Aman Arora condemned the murder and said it was triggered by personal enmity but opposition parties ripped into the govt, alleging a complete breakdown of law and order.Punjab BJP chief Kewal Singh Dhillon wrote to the governor for a CBI probe. Congress Leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa on Tuesday said the murder raises grave questions about AAP’s ‘Yudh Nasheyan Virudh’ campaign. It must be seen against a disturbing series of cases involving people who have raised concerns about the availability of drugs in Punjab, he remarked, mentioning the recent suicide of Gulzar Singh and the suicide bid of Jagseer Singh aka Jagga.Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Kuldeep Singh Gargajj said the murder of an activist, who was putting his life in danger by raising his voice against drugs, is “a very serious matter”, and authorities should take serious note of it.Police said Jhota and Kumar had a bitter history as the activist had paraded the chemist around the bazaar with a garland of shoes around his neck in 2023, accusing him of selling drugs. Cases were filed against both of them. Jhota was arrested on charges of assault, trespass and rioting and remanded in jail, but a number of social and farmer organisations held protests for days, demanding his release. The complainant approached court to withdraw his complaint and Jhota walked out of jail on Sept 11, 2023. The case against the chemist for selling prohibited substances is on.Jhota continued campaigning against drugs. Lately, he was raising his voice against certain medical stores that were allegedly selling intoxicating pills and synthetic drugs.On Tuesday, Jhota went live on social media as he confronted Ashwani Kumar in his pharmacy. Around 9.40am, he apparently met an elderly man who had bought synthetic drugs from a medical store. Jhota took him back to the shop and asked the chemist why he was selling prohibited substances. A heated exchange followed and the store owner pulled a pistol.Refusing to be cowed, Jhota is heard on video, saying ‘mar mainu’ (kill me), and the gunman begins firing. Jhota and four others were hit. Mansa Civil Hospital senior medical officer Dr Gurmail Singh said Jhota was shot twice on either side of the abdomen and once in the right thigh, and died. Four others — Kulwinder Singh, Gobind Singh, Baltej Singh and Happy — suffered bullet or splinter injuries and are being treated.Bathinda DIG Harjit Singh and Mansa SSP Vaibhav Chaudhary said police teams were looking for Kumar. “An incident involving the two individuals had taken place in 2023, and this is being examined as part of the investigation,” said the DIG.