While fugitive pro-Khalistani leader Amritpal Singh still remains on the run, his mentor and social media handler Papalpreet Singh has been arrested. According to reports, the Punjab police arrested Papalpreet Singh from Punjab’s Hoshiarpur, where he was recently spotted casually roaming around in the compound of Gurdwara Sahib and connecting link roads. Papalpreet Singh was nabbed today (April 10) in a joint operation by Delhi police special cell.
Pro-Khalistani sympathiser Amritpal Singh’s aide Papalpreet Singh arrested from Hoshiarpur in an operation conducted by Punjab Police and its counter-intelligence unit: Sources pic.twitter.com/viDBYofrNd
— ANI (@ANI) April 10, 2023
Papalpreet Singh’s arrest is being considered a major breakthrough in the case as he is believed to be very close to Amritpal Singh.
It may be recalled that on April 1, a CCTV footage emerged wherein Amritpal Singh’s key aide Papalpreet Singh can be seen casually roaming around in the compound of a dera in Hoshiarpur in Punjab. According to reports, Papalpreet Singh, who provided all logistics and contacts required to live in hiding for Amritpal Singh, got separated from the latter in the same city.
Times Now has accessed CCTV footage showing the close aide of Amritpal Singh in a Gurdwara in Hoshiarpur. Papalpreet Singh is considered to be very close to fugitive pro-Khalistani leader Amritpal Singh.@Gurpreet_Chhina shares the latest updates with @anchoramitaw. pic.twitter.com/ScZscyxm52
— TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) April 1, 2023
The police believed that Amritpal Singh and his key aide Papalpreet Singh separated and chose to take different routes after the Innova SUV they were travelling in from Phagwara to Hoshiarpur got intercepted on March 28 evening.
Meanwhile, after discovering the evidence of Papalpreet’s stay in Hoshiarpur, police teams utilised drones to track any suspicious movements. Several barricades were placed at key points and a thorough search of all vehicles in Marnaian and nearby villages including Harkhowal, Bibi Di Pandori and Bassi was conducted.
Notably, since the Punjab police began the search for the Waris Punjab De chief and pro-Khalistani sympathiser on March 18, multiple CCTV footages have emerged purportedly of Amritpal Singh in which he is seen casually roaming around, either on foot or in vehicles. Recently, Amritpal Singh, himself released his first video since the Punjab police action against him and claimed that it was not about his arrest but an attack on the Sikh community. He opined that the government could have arrested him at home if they had wanted to.
