He was on the run since 18 March, hoodwinking police and changing avatars. After an epic manhunt which lasted 37 days, across 10 cities, Waris Punjab De leader and Khalistan sympathiser Amritpal Singh surrendered at a gurudwara in Rode village in Punjab’s Moga. He was arrested by the Punjab Police and is reportedly being shifted to Assam’s Dibrugarh.
The police had launched a massive crackdown against the 29-year-old radical preacher after his supporters stormed the Anjala police station in February, demanding the release of one of the members of Waris Punjab De. What followed was a challenging chase, where he gave the police a slip twice – on 18 March in Jalandhar by switching vehicles and on 28 March again in Hoshiarpur when he returned to Punjab along with his key associate Papalpreet Singh.
Over the past month, eight of his aides including Papalpreet Singh have been arrested under the National Security Act. They are in jail in Dibrugarh, where Amritpal will join them.
After the arrest, Punjab Police asked people to maintain peace and not spread fake news. Amritpal has massive support in the state. But then how did the rise to infamy? What do we know about the preacher and his outfit?
#AmritpalSingh arrested in Moga, Punjab.
Further details will be shared by #PunjabPolice
Urge citizens to maintain peace and harmony, Don’t share any fake news, always verify and share.
— Punjab Police India (@PunjabPoliceInd) April 23, 2023
Who is Amritpal Singh?
Amritpal Singh is the follower of pro-Khalistan militant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, a leading figure of the separatist movement in the early 1980s, who was killed by the Indian Army in Operation Blue Star. Now Amritpal is dubbed ‘Bhindranwale 2.0’ in Punjab.
The government describes him as a Khalistani-Pakistan agent.
Amritpal was born in Jallupur Khera village in Punjab’s Amritsar district, studied until Class 10 and then enrolled at a polytechnic in Kapurthala. He dropped out from there and later left for Dubai to join his family’s transport business in 2012. He is married to a UK-based non-resident Indian, Kirandeep Kaur, who was stopped from travelling to the United Kingdom earlier this week.
Amritpal has been vocal about issues related to Sikhs on social media for at least the last five years, according to a report in The Quint. Before he returned to India last August, he spent one-and-a-half months in Georgia, The Indian Express reported citing a senior officer with the Union government’s security establishment. His return coincided with the farmers’ protest against the Centre’s controversial farm laws.
In September 2022, Singh was made the head of a faction of Waris Punjab De, which claims to be a social organisation founded by the late Punjabi actor and activist Deep Sidhu.
Also read: Does Pakistan’s ISI have a role in Khalistan propagator Amritpal Singh’s rise in Punjab?
What do we know about Waris Punjab De?
Waris Punjab De, which translates to “heirs of Punjab”, was founded by the late actor and activist Deep Sidhu, who actively participated in the farmers’ protest. He died in a road accident last February.
Sidhu founded the group in September 2021 ahead of the Punjab polls. At the time, he called it a social platform, which had nothing to do with the elections. “We are not supporting any political party. Hindu, Muslim, Sikh or Christian, it is for all those who will fight with us for the rights of Punjab,” The Indian Express quoted Sidhu as saying.
However, Sidhu eventually supported the radical pro-Khalistan party SAD (Amritsar) of Simranjit Singh Mann and campaigned for them ahead of the Punjab elections.
Sidhu became popular in Punjab and when he died he was cremated in his hometown Ludhiana as pro-Khalistani slogans were raised.
How did Amritpal become the head of Waris Punjab De?
On September 2022, Amritpal took over as the head of the outfit. He dressed as Bhindranwale and a dastarbandi (turban-tying ceremony) was held at Rode in Moga district, the ancestral village of Bhindranwale. Thousands of pro-Khalistani supporters attended it.
But Sindhu’s family claims not to know Singh or how he took over the group.
Deep Sidhu’s brother Mandeep Singh Sidhu, a Ludhiana-based advocate, told The Indian Express: “We never met him before. Deep too never met him. He was in touch with Deep over the phone for some time but later Deep blocked him. We do not know how he declared himself as head of my brother’s organisation. He is misusing our name to propagate anti-social activities. He somehow got access to my brother’s social media accounts and started posting on them.”
“Amritpal is talking about creating unrest in Punjab. He is befooling people using my brother’s and Khalistan’s name. My brother was not a separatist,” Mandeep added.
But Sindhu’s uncle Harjit Singh had a different story to tell. “We do not know why Sidhu’s brother and family are not supporting it. Amritpal’s mission is to encourage youths to become Amritdhari Sikhs (baptised) and shun drugs,” he was quoted as saying by the newspaper.
Since taking over Waris Punjab De, Amritpal gained notoriety.
Also read: Changed vehicles, knocked down bikes: How Amritpal Singh evaded arrest from Punjab Police
What are the crimes of Amritpal Singh?
According to sources in the home ministry, the preacher was planning to launch a statewide procession to baptise the youth in Punjab to carry out suicide attacks. He was using de-addiction centres to stockpile weapons illegally sourced from Pakistan through its spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence, reports NDTV. He has been accused of promoting “gun culture” and trying to create communal tension in Punjab. He called on Sikh youth to “fight for freedom”.
“We all are still slaves… We have to fight for freedom… Our waters are being looted, and our Guru is being disrespected… The youth of Punjab should be ready to give up their lives for panth,” the Khalistan sympathiser was quoted as saying by The Indian Express.
Amritpal reportedly issued a threat to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, saying he will meet the same fate as former prime minister Indira Gandhi. In February, his supporters, some of them brandishing swords and guns, broke through barricades and stormed a police station in Ajnala on the outskirts of Amritsar city, demanding that Lovepreet Singh alias Toofan, an accused in a case involving kidnapping, be released.
It was since then that Punjab Police started looking for Amritpal and his aides.
It was in Rode village that he took over the outfit and it was here that Amritpal surrendered after he addressed a gathering at a gurudwara. The Punjab Police received inputs about the preacher’s whereabouts after which they surrounded the gurudwara from all sides. He had no choice but to give in, say officials.
With inputs from agencies
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