'Son struggled with drug addiction, mental illness': Punjab ex-DGP, family denies involvement in Aqil Akhtar's death

Former Punjab Director General of Police Mohammad Mustafa, who was booked for allegedly being involved in the death of his son, Aqil Akhtar, has denied all allegations against him and his family and called all accusations baseless. An FIR was registered against Mustafa, his wife, Razia Sultana who is a former cabinet minister, their daughter, and daughter-in-law after Akhtar died under suspicious circumstances in Panchkula, Haryana.

In a statement, Mustafa said that the registration of the FIR did not prove guilt. He said that his son had been addicted to drugs for the past 18 years and had developed severe mental illness.

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Speaking to the India Express, he said, “He died after injecting buprenorphine in overdose as per the initial police probe. For 18 years, since 2007, we were getting him treated for addiction, including at PGIMER Chandigarh, but he would relapse. He had even set our house on fire once.”

“He was into drugs since he was studying in Class 10 at Welham Boys School in Dehradun, and was expelled from multiple schools in Chandigarh. Since 2007, we had been getting him treated for addiction, but he would relapse. Due to psychosis, he had started imagining things.”

He also said that his son had tried to commit arson once. “He harassed his wife and mother for money for drugs and had even set our house on fire once. We had filed police complaints against him multiple times at Panchkula, but would retract considering he was our blood,” he said.

The family, including their daughter-in-law and grandchildren, struggled with Aqil’s drug addiction for years, according to Mustafa. “We tried to keep things confined in the four walls of the house, but for how long? Due to his actions, we got a house on rent for his family where his wife lives with their two children. My grandson (Aqil’s son) went into depression seeing how his mother was tortured by my son. Those raising a finger at my daughter-in-law have no idea what she has been through,” he said. He also added that his son's de-addiction treatment is on record.

“My son had also attacked my security team and gunmen, and they had left the work. Once, he had also attacked cops in Chandigarh. My son was addicted to psychotropic drugs, and later he had also shifted to soft drugs. Some time ago, some peddlers gave him an ICE drug, and he relapsed again. He would not even remember the date or time of when he would record a particular video, and would later retract his words after some hours. He would also torture his mother, asking for money for drugs, and had set the house on fire,”he added.  

Sultana and Nishat, Aqil’s sister, put out statements on their facebook account. In it, they said that they will fight against the dirty politicking even when they are mourning Aqil. “A case has been registered against our family on the complaint of a person who has a dirty mindset and low politicking. According to ex-DGP Mustafa and as per rules, if police receive any complaint, then it becomes the duty of police to register an FIR, but that does not mean any offence has been proven. Now, a probe will actually start, and the truth will be out in front of people. It is true that we have been devastated by the death of our young son, but that doesn’t mean we won’t fight this dirty politicking," they said in the statement. 

Aqil was found unconscious at his home in Sector 4, Panchkua, early this month. He was declared dead at the hospital. Police had found no signs of foul play, and his body was handed over to the family for the last rites.

The complaint was made by Shamshudin Chaudhary of Malerkotla, Punjab, and the FIR was registered at the Mansa Devi Complex police station in Panchkula. Shamshudin cited a video where Aktaar made several allegations against multiple members of his family.

Mustafa, who retired as the Punjab DGP in 2021, said that he respected the police’s decisions to register the FIR. “If the police receive a written complaint in any matter, it becomes their duty to register an FIR on that complaint. The Panchkula Police have carried out this duty, and I welcome it.”

He also said that the allegations came from  “dirty politics and cheap thinking” aimed at damaging his family’s reputation. “Those who got the FIR registered based on baseless allegations should also be prepared to face the law,” he said.  

India