MADHOPUR (PATHANKOT), Sept. 19 -- Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president Nitin Nabin on Friday launched a 13-day 'Nasha Mukt Punjab Yatra' from Ekta Sthal in Madhopur, Pathankot. The political and social outreach drive aims to mobilise the public against the state's drug crisis and build momentum ahead of next year's assembly election. Wearing a saffron turban, Nabin addressed the gathering and said that Punjabis want a rising Punjab, not an 'Udta Punjab'. He said the time had come for a decisive fight against those who, using the power of office, had allegedly promoted corruption and worsened the law-and-order situation, thereby ruining Punjab through drugs. The yatra commenced with campaign vehicles flagging off to chants of "Bhajpa da naara, nasha mukauna saara" (BJP's slogan: Eradicate drugs completely). The 'yatras' covering nearly 4,000 kilometres in all 117 assembly constituencies would culminate in a Jalandhar rally addressed by Union home minister Amit Shah on September 30. Flagging off the campaign's first leg at the memorial site of Bharatiya Jana Sangh founder Syama Prasad Mookerjee, Nabin said Punjab needs opportunities, education and employment rather than substance abuse. Prior to the launch, he met 50 families affected by drug-related deaths and promised political and social support. He called for a decisive fight against drugs. Attacking the Bhagwant Mann government, Nabin accused ruling elements of turning Punjab's plight into a thriving drug industry through corruption and political patronage. Nabin outlined a five-point action plan: Direct action against drug traffickers; disruption of interstate and international supply chains; seizure and confiscation of assets built on illicit drug money; medical and psychological rehabilitation for addicted youth; and community mobilisation involving teachers, doctors, athletes, religious bodies, and local youth groups. Addressing the gathering, state BJP president Kewal Singh Dhillon highlighted the party's performance record in other states, stating that the BJP has eliminated Naxalism, ended gang violence in Uttar Pradesh, and restored peace in Kashmir, promising similar action against drugs if voted to power. Former Union minister Ravneet Singh Bittu alleged that his convoy was attacked by AAP workers near Ghaseetpur village, close to Batala, while he was travelling from Amritsar to Pathankot to attend the launch of 'Punjab Nasha Mukti Yatra. Bittu alleged that AAP workers were protesting against him as his cavalcade approached an office belonging to Joban Randhawa, AAP's in-charge for the Fatehgarh Churian. He alleged that a crowd surrounded his vehicles, hurled eggs and tomatoes, and smashed the windows of his convoy cars....