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OTHERS Amritpal Singh The 30-year-old pro-Khalistan propagator says Punjab is facing ‘a crisis of identity’
On February 23, a violent mob, led by Amritpal Singh, a pro-Khalistan (sovereign state for Sikhs) propagator and self-styled Sikh preacher, stormed a police station in Punjab’s Amritsar, in what he called a “show of strength”. The protesters wanted one of their own to be released from police custody. The Aam Aadmi Party government of Punjab caved in to the demand.
The 30-year-old Amritpal does not have pretensions or niceties when it comes to his core beliefs. He openly says he draws “inspiration” from Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, the militant leader who was killed in 1984. He recently said “the Khalistan movement cannot be stopped from flourishing”.
More often, he is seen wearing a navy blue turban and a white robe with a sword-sized kirpan (the sacred dagger of Sikhs), surrounded by gun-wielding guards — in a...