Family’s unsuccessful bid for a hearing raises questions over Mann government’s sensitivity towards those seeking justice in drug-linked killings
MANSA: The parents of slain Punjab drug officer Neha Shoree, who have spent more than seven years seeking an independent investigation into their daughter’s murder, allegedly faced another setback when police prevented them from meeting Union Home Minister Amit Shah during his visit to Mansa on Tuesday.
The elderly couple had reached Mansa hoping to raise their demand for a CBI inquiry with Shah, who was visiting Punjab to meet families of people whose deaths have been linked to their opposition to drugs, including murdered anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota.
Their unsuccessful attempt to secure a hearing raises serious questions about the sensitivity of the administration under Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann towards a family that has continued to challenge the investigation into their daughter’s killing.
Neha Shoree, a zonal licensing authority with Punjab’s Food and Drugs Administration, was shot dead inside her office at Kharar on March 29, 2019. The assailant, Balwinder Singh, was a chemist whose medical store licence had been cancelled following a raid led by Shoree in 2009. According to the police account, intoxicating medicines had been found at the shop without the requisite documents authorising their sale.
Her killing highlighted the risks faced by officials acting against the unauthorised sale of addictive pharmaceutical drugs—a concern brought into sharp focus again by Jhota’s murder in Mansa on October 13.
Shoree’s father, Captain Kailash Kumar Shoree, a 1971 war veteran, and mother Arun Shoree, a retired schoolteacher, have consistently questioned the police investigation. They suspect a wider conspiracy behind the murder and have demanded that a central agency examine the case.
Police investigators have maintained that they did not establish the involvement of a wider drug network. The family disputes those findings, and its petition seeking an independent investigation remains pending before the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
For the parents, the years since their daughter’s death have involved repeated representations to authorities and appeals to senior government functionaries. Their journey to Mansa was another attempt to have their concerns heard.
Arun Shoree had also visited Jhota’s family on Sunday to express solidarity. Both families have questioned the adequacy of state police investigations and sought CBI intervention.
The contrast was stark on Tuesday: while the Punjab government announced its decision to refer Jhota’s murder investigation to the CBI, Shoree’s parents alleged that they could not even reach the visiting Home Minister to present their longstanding plea.
The alleged obstruction reflects an apparent failure to respond compassionately to a bereaved family. Even if security arrangements restricted access, the administration needs to explain whether an effort was made to receive their representation or facilitate a hearing through an authorised official.
Shoree was murdered in 2019, before the AAP government took office in 2022. However, the Mann administration remains answerable for its handling of the family’s continuing grievances and the conduct of police during Tuesday’s visit.
No police explanation for the alleged denial of access was available. There is no established evidence that the Chief Minister personally directed police to stop the couple.
More than seven years after losing their daughter, Shoree’s parents continue to seek an investigation that addresses their unanswered questions. Their experience in Mansa underscores the distance between political assurances of justice and the difficulties families face in obtaining a hearing.