Punjab police begin crackdown on Sikh hardliner Amritpal Singh, supporters

Chandigarh: Weeks after the Ajnala episode, Punjab police are learnt to have begun a crackdown on Sikh hardliner Amritpal Singh and his supporters.

Also Read: Amritpal Singh arrested after hours long chase, official statement awaited

As per the media reports, while Amritpal escaped arrest near Jalandhar, several of his close aides have been arrested from different parts of Punjab.

There are reports that Amritpal may be arrested anytime during the day or later by evening.

The police from different districts are part of this big operation, said sources.

Several videos of the current police action are going viral. In one such video shared on twitter, Amritpal Singh's aide claimed that about 100 of Punjab Police officers were following him for arrest.

- Amritpal Singh's aide did Facebook Live and claimed that about 100 of Punjab Police officers is following him for arrest.

- Punjab police have sealed the road and put up barricades and the vehicles are being checked for looking #AmritpalSingh near Dharamkot area of Moga. https://t.co/h7I3ccG8Om pic.twitter.com/7m725agtkG

— Nikhil Choudhary (@NikhilCh_) March 18, 2023

Punjab police is learnt to have sealed the road and put up barricades in several parts of Punjab.

In another video, a supporter claimed that police had made an attempt to arrest Amritpal Singh in Jalandhar’s Shahkot area.

#AmritpalSingh supporter claims that he reached at Shahkot Malsia where punjab police tried to arrest him. pic.twitter.com/j4wlg6lHst

— Akashdeep Thind (@thind_akashdeep) March 18, 2023

Claiming that Amritpal is safe, he asked all his supporters to reach there.

There are also unconfirmed reports of the internet being shut down in several parts of Punjab as a part of a crackdown operation to nab Amritpal.

There is no clarity so far about arrests being made under which cases but the police's latest action may have its roots in last month’s siege at Ajnala police station near Amritsar.

During the siege, Amritpal and his supporters used force to take over the police station and even beat up police officers after one of his aides was arrested in a kidnapping and assault case.

As the incident sent shockwaves across the country, the Aam Aadmi Party government was under pressure from several quarters for strong action against the 29- years-old Sikh preacher.

Amritpal, who took over a pressure group “Waris Punjab De” last September after returning from Dubai, was openly advocating for Khalistan, a separate Sikh state.

He even said recently that merely possessing an Indian passport, which he described as a travel document, doesn’t make him an Indian citizen.

While many were drawn to him, he was also accused of disturbing the hard-earned peace and harmony of Punjab.