Hunt for Amritpal: Punjab cops invoke NSA against five of preacher's aides
The fifth is Amritpal’s uncle Harjit Singh, who surrendered on Sunday night near Jalandhar. He, too, has been taken to the Assam jail.
Published: 21st March 2023 09:08 AM | Last Updated: 21st March 2023 09:08 AM | A+A A-
A file photo of Pro-Khalistani activist and chief of Waris Punjab De, Amritpal Singh. (Photo | PTI)
CHANDIGARH/NEW DELHI: With Khalistani sympathiser Amritpal Singh continuing to be elusive, the Punjab Police on Monday invoked the stringent National Security Act (NSA) against five of his close associates.
Amritpal could also face charges under the NSA after his arrest, said Inspector General of Police Sukhchain Singh Gill. Four of those booked under the NSA were shifted to the Dibrugarh Central Jail in Assam on Sunday to isolate them from the rest of their associates.
The fifth is Amritpal’s uncle Harjit Singh, who surrendered on Sunday night near Jalandhar. He, too, has been taken to the Assam jail. The Punjab government also extended the suspension of mobile internet services till Tuesday noon. “We have evidence that the close associates of Amritpal were forming an Anandpur Khalsa Fauj (AKF).
Bulletproof jackets with AKF written on them were recovered from his house,’’ Gill said. The police suspect the accused had foreign funding as they were using hawala channels for cash transactions. “Besides, we suspect an ISI (Pakistan’s deep state) angle in it,” Gill added. While Punjab continues to be peaceful, small pockets of protests against the police action emerged abroad.
Strong protest
Khalistani supporters vandalised the Indian High Commission in London, attacked the Indian Consulate in San Francisco in the US and staged a protest outside the Australian Parliament in Canberra. India conveyed its strong protest to US Charge d’Affaires Elizabeth Jones over vandalism in San Francisco in a meeting with her, the MEA said.
“The US government was reminded of its basic obligation to protect and secure diplomatic representation. It was asked to take appropriate measures to prevent the recurrence of such incidents,’’ the MEA said, adding that the Indian Embassy in Washington DC also conveyed its concerns to the US State Department on similar lines
READ MORE:
INTERVIEW | An armed struggle is always the last option, if it is imposed on us: Amritpal Singh
Punjab's Amritpal Singh aka 'Bhindranwale 2.0': Radical preacher and Khalistan sympathiser
