LOC issued; Amritpal Singh brandished rifle, changed clothes, looks to flee

Search for Waris Punjab De chief Amritpal Singh has been extended to other states on Tuesday after Punjab Police on Wednesday released several photos of the radical Sikh leader so that he can be identified even if he has changed his looks to bluff the police. In one of the photos, Amritpal Singh looks clean-shaven.

The India-Nepal border is under a close watch. The Uttarakhand Police conducted a combing operation at gurudwaras, hotels in Uttarakhand’s Udham Singh Nagar district, close to the border. The Punjab Police issued a lookout circular and a non-bailable arrest warrant against Amritpal Singh.

Here are the latest updates on Amritpal Singh:

1. The Punjab Police on Tuesday revealed details of how Amritpal Singh fled. He visited Gurdwara Sahib in Nangal Ambian in Jalandhar and escaped on a motorcycle after changing clothes. Read | ‘He ate food…’: Eyewitness reveals how Amritpal planned escape

2. Four have been arrested on charges of aiding him to escape. Manpreet, Gurdeep, Harpreet, and Gurpej helped Amritpal Singh escape in a Brezza vehicle. The vehicle has been seized and Arms Act has been invoked as a rifle has been recovered from the vehicle.

3. Residents of the village where Amritpal Singh took refuge on March 18, when the crackdown began, said they were unaware of anything. They got to know only after the police came for an investigation on Tuesday.

4. Amritpal Singh also had food at the Gurudwara. The ‘Babaji’ of the Gurudwara admitted that the radical Sikh leader came there.

5. Amritpal Singh changed into a shirt and pants and escaped from the gurudwara with three others on two bikes.

6. Several unverified videos of how Amritpal Singh escaped emerged. In one video, the car could also be seen at a toll booth.

7. In the court, police said during the chase. Amritpal brandished his .315 rifle with the objective of creating fear amongst the public.

8. Police released many pictures of Amritpal Singh in different attires as part of its efforts to arrest him. In one of them, Amritpal is clean-shaven.

9. National Security Act has been invoked against Amritpal Singh. A total of 154 people have been arrested as part of the crackdown.

10. Amritpal Singh’s uncle and driver have been booked in a separate case for taking shelter for two days at the residence of the sarpanch of the Uddowal village in Mehatpur in Jalandhar, at gunpoint.