Amritsar: A 40-year-old man was killed and two of his companions were critically injured in an armed assault at Madi Pannwan village near Sri Hargobindpur in Batala on Thursday evening, police said on Friday. The victims were targeted for opposing drug peddling in their neighbourhood.

The assault comes close on the heels of the October 13 killing of anti-drug activist Parwinder Singh Jhota in Mansa for confronting a medical store owner, Ashwini Kumar, over the synthetic drug trade. While Ashwini was arrested and a Punjab bandh was called on Thursday to protest the murder, recurring violence against residents taking on local narcotics networks has triggered anger and concern across the state.

Thursday’s attack occurred around 8pm within the jurisdiction of the Batala police district. The victim, Bikramjit Singh, 40, died, while his companions, Nishan Singh and Gurmukh Singh, are under treatment after sustaining severe injuries.

Gurmukh Singh said that a group of local youngsters routinely loitered in their street, harassing women and selling narcotics openly. Tensions flared on Thursday evening when the residents attempted to stop the illegal activity.

According to the victims, a group of 10 to 15 men armed with sharp weapons ambushed Bikramjit, Nishan, and Gurmukh.

Village Sarpanch Surinderpal Singh Bajwa said that the victims were attacked shortly after approaching the group.

Villagers intervened and rushed them to the Community Health Centre (CHC) at Bham. Dr Abhishek of the CHC said that Bikramjit succumbed to his injuries during treatment, while Nishan and Gurmukh remain in critical condition.

Police led by Sri Hargobindpur station house officer Sukhjinder Singh reached the spot to inspect the scene and register a case. Authorities said an investigation is underway to verify the allegations regarding drug peddling and trace the attackers.