Punjab to extend Sikh radical leader, MP Amritpal’s NSA detention for another year

State govt, however, has decided not to extend the detention of Amritpal’s nine associates, who were brought back from Dibrugarh jail in Assam recently to face trial for laying siege to Ajnala police station in 2023.

The Punjab government is set to extend the detention of Khadoor Sahib member of Parliament and radical Sikh leader Amritpal Singh under the National Security Act (NSA) for another year.

The Punjab government is set to extend the detention of Khadoor Sahib member of Parliament and radical Sikh leader Amritpal Singh under the National Security Act (NSA) for another year. (HT file photo)

A notice in this regard is being issued to the 32-year-old NSA detainee, who has been jailed in Dibrugarh in Assam since April 2023, a senior Punjab government official said in Chandigarh on Friday.

The decision to extend Amritpal’s detention was taken after deliberations between state and the central agencies keeping in mind security concerns, the official said, requesting anonymity.

Amritpal, who heads the Waris Punjab De outfit, was arrested at Rode village in Moga district on April 23, 2023, following a month-long manhunt by Punjab Police as part of their crackdown that came three weeks after his supporters stormed the Ajnala police station in Amritsar district on February 23, demanding the release of one of his accomplices, Lovepreet Toofan.

The Punjab government has decided not to extend the NSA detention of the nine accused, who are in police custody. They are Basant Singh, Bhagwant Singh Bajekhana, Gurmeet Singh Bukkanwala, Sarabjit Kalsi, Gurinder Pal Singh, Harjeet Singh, Kulwant Singh, Pappalpreet Singh and Varinderpal Johal.