Chandigarh: The Punjab Police have registered an FIR against self-styled Sikh preacher and Khalistan activist Amritpal Singh Sandhu as well as his associates on charges including abduction and rioting.
The FIR was registered Thursday evening on the basis of a complaint filed by one Barinder Singh, a resident of Salempur village in Chamkaur Sahib, Rupnagar district. According to Ajnala Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Sanjeev Kumar, Barinder Singh said in his statement that he was beaten up ruthlessly by Amritpal and his men Wednesday.
Kumar told mediapersons that apart from Amritpal and five of his associates, 25 unidentified people have been booked as well. No arrests have been made so far in the case, he added.
In September last year, Amritpal was made the head of a faction of Waris Punjab De, a social organisation founded by late Punjabi actor and lawyer Deep Sidhu.
“In his statement, he (Barinder) has claimed that he had come to the Damdami Taksal at Ajnala yesterday (Wednesday) with his friends to participate in an ongoing Samagam (meeting). He first received a call from some persons who said that they would like to talk to him regarding the various differences he had with Amritpal Singh. Then they came to meet him at the Taksal,” said the DSP.
He added: “They then asked him to come outside the Taksal complex where two vehicles were waiting… Barinder has claimed that he was taken towards Jandiala Guru where he was beaten up by Amritpal and his men….” Jandiala Guru is a town in Amritsar district.
Barinder’s two mobile phones and the money he had was taken away from him, said Kumar, adding that he was later let off and managed to contact one of his friends.
“The FIR has been lodged under sections 365 (kidnapping or abduction), 379 (theft), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 148 (rioting, armed with deadly weapon) and 149 (unlawful assembly) of the IPC,” the DCP said.
The has been no official response from Amritpal Singh Sandhu regarding the FIR against him.
Barinder was admitted to the government hospital in Ajnala after he was rescued by his relatives late night, according to the FIR copy, accessed by ThePrint.
Talking to mediapersons from the hospital, Barinder Singh said he was initially impressed by Amritpal and his speeches. He said that he just wanted to tell Amritpal that some of his people “abuse women” and shouldn’t be part of his “jathebandi” (organisation). “On 7 February, I went live on Facebook and spoke about these issues,” said Singh.
Elaborating on the Wednesday’s incident, Barinder said the car in which he was traveling with the two people he met at Damdami Taksal was stopped on its way to Jandiala Guru. “[There] I saw Amritpal Singh along with 30-35 people. They had rods, sticks and weapons… I greeted him but he started beating me up… others joined him… This ordeal continued for two three hours.”
“I was asked to apologise and a video was made of my apology. Had I not done that, they would have killed me,” Barinder added.
(Edited by Anumeha Saxena)
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