- Wednesday, November 27, 2024
By: Shubham Ghosh
Supporters of Khalistan sympathiser Amritpal Singh on Thursday (23) clashed with police and stormed into a police complex in Amritsar district of the northern Indian state of Punjab, protesting against the arrest of one of his associates.
Police had booked Singh and his supporters for allegedly kidnapping a man.
Carrying swords and guns, scores of supporters led by Singh had assembled at the police station in Ajnala in Amritsar.
Earlier before reaching Ajnala, they staged a protest in the middle of the road at Dhilwan toll plaza in the state’s Kapurthala district when they were stopped by police from march towards Amritsar.
But police later allowed them to continue with their march towards the Ajnala police station.
Their protest led to a traffic jam on the Amritsar-Delhi national highway for some time. After reaching, Singh and his supporters were prevented by police at Ajnala bus stand by erecting barricades.
However, they forced their way through the barricades and also managed to gain entry inside the police station after clashing with police. They asked police to cancel the FIR registered against Singh and his supporters and also threatened to carry on their protest for an indefinite period at the site.
Heavy security arrangements were made at the police station as the protesters began a dharna in the complex. A case was registered against Singh, a self-styled preacher, and his supporters for allegedly kidnapping and thrashing a resident of Chamkaur Sahib in Rupnagar district.
Singh had reportedly issued a threat recently to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, saying he will meet the same fate as that of former prime minister Indira Gandhi. Dubai-returned Singh is the head of ‘Waris Punjab De’ organisation founded by actor and activist Deep Sidhu who died in a road accident in February last year.
(PTI)
