Chandigarh: The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Tuesday heard the case in connection with arrest of the ‘Waris Punjab De’ chief Amritpal Singh and reprimanded the state government. “How did he (Amritpal Singh) escape?” the bench headed by Justice N S Shekhawat asked Advocate General Vinod Ghai.”
The bench further asked how all except Amritpal Singh have been arrested. “You have 80,000 police. How was he not arrested? If he escaped , it’s an intelligence failure. The entire police force was behind him.”
In response, the AG said, “It happens sometimes. The G-20 summit was also going on,” he said.
Ghai told the police that Punjab Police have imposed the National Security Act (NSA) on Amritpal Singh as he became a threat to the national security.
Meanwhile, the high court appointed advocate Tanu Bedi as Amicus Curiae in the case and adjourned the hearing for four days.
The Punjab and Haryana High Court will now hear the matter after four days. The court has ordered the Punjab government to file a status report of the case.
Earlier, NSA has been invoked against four associates of Amritpal Singh, Inspector General of Punjab Police Sukhchain Singh Gill said. Amritpal Singh’s uncle Harjeet Singh, who was arrested, is also likely to be booked under the stringent law.
While Amritpal Singh’s four aides Daljit Singh Kalsi, Bhagwant Singh, Gurmeet Singh and Bhagwant Singh alias Pardhan Mantri Bajeke, are lodged in Assam’s Dibrugarh jail, his uncle is also being taken there.