The Punjab government has informed the Akal Takht that 348 of the 360 people taken into preventive custody during a police crackdown against radical preacher Amritpal Singh have now been freed.
The Indian embassy in Kathmandu has requested the government agencies to arrest Singh if he tries to flee from Nepal, the Kathmandu Post newspaper reported.
The Jammu and Kashmir police on Thursday booked Varinder Singh, suspected to be the bodyguard of the fugitive radical preacher Amritpal Singh, under the Arms Act in connection with a gun licence issued to him in Kishtwar district, officials said.
"Political leaders should not indulge in blame games at this stage. They must support the efforts of state police and the Centre," Bitta said.
The Income Tax notice was recovered from the house of Baljeet Kaur at Shahabad in Kurukshetra in Haryana where Papalpreet and Amritpal had taken shelter on March 19 and 20 before fleeing from there.
An order to detain radical preacher Amritpal Singh under the stringent National Security Act was issued by the Amritsar district magistrate on Saturday, said a police officer's affidavit which also described how the Waris Punjab De chief gave the cops the slip.
Assam's Director-General of Police (DGP) Gyanendra Pratap Singh said the threat to Sarma by the pro-Khalistan group was being taken very seriously.
The state authorities had on Saturday suspended the internet and SMS services till Sunday noon.
Amritpal Singh and others are on the run and a massive manhunt has been launched to nab them, a police spokesperson said.
According to officials, security has been tightened in Assam.
Carrying swords and other arms, scores of supporters led by Singh had assembled at the police station in Ajnala in Amritsar. They broke the barricades put up by police.
The Facebook page amassed a huge following, causing confusion among people, who assumed that Amritpal had taken over the organisation created by Deep Sidhu.
The petition was filed by advocate Iman Singh Khara, seeking the "release" of Amritpal Singh from alleged police custody. Khara is the legal advisor of Amritpal Singh and his outfit 'Waris Punjab De.'
The police kept searching for these criminals across the district, city superintendent of police Manoj Katyal said in Rudrapur.
The searches covered the properties of accused Shahrukh Saifi and other suspects, a spokesperson of the National Investigation Agency said.
Singh also defended Madhya Pradesh Congress chief Kamal Nath over the latter's comments on 'Hindu Rashtra.'
Amid a police crackdown on Amritpal Singh and his outfit, the pro-Khalistan preacher appeared in a video on Wednesday, calling for a 'Sarbat Khalsa' congregation on Baisakhi to discuss issues related to the Sikh community and saying he is in high spirits.
During their state-wide operation, police seized one .315 bore rifle, seven 12 bore rifles, one revolver, and 373 live cartridges of different caliber, they said.
Donning a flowing white chola' and a navy blue turban and often escorted by armed supporters, radical preacher and Khalistan sympathiser Amritpal Singh has been quite active in Punjab for some time.
Senior Madhya Pradesh Congress leader Kamal Nath on Tuesday asked whether it is needed to say separately that India is a 'Hindu Rashtra' given the fact that 82 per cent of Hindus live in the country.
Haryana Police have arrested a woman who allegedly harboured Amritpal Singh and his associate Papalpreet Singh at her home in Kurukshetra district, an indication that the pro-Khalistan preacher might have fled Punjab.
The Khalistan sympathiser, who is yet to be nabbed, escaped the police's net in Jalandhar district on March 18, switching vehicles and changing his appearance.
A multi-tier security arrangement has been made at the Central Jail in Dibrugarh where Singh will be lodged.
"Amritpal Singh came to the Rodewal Gurudwara on Saturday night. He himself informed the police about his presence and that he will surrender this morning at 7 am," claimed Singh Sahib Giani Jasbir Singh Rode of Rodewal Gurudwara in Moga, while speaking to ANI over phone.
Route inspection for Kanwar Yatra and peace meetings with Hindu and Muslim community members came on instructions of police commissioner Alok Singh, according to a police statement
Security forces took out flag marches at several places including Ferozepur, Bathinda, Rupnagar, Faridkot, Batala, Fazilka, Hoshiarpur, Gurdaspur, Moga and Jalandhar in a show of strength.
At least six YouTube channels allegedly promoting pro-Khalistan sentiments have been blocked at the instance of the government, a senior official said on Friday.
Amritpal Singh was arrested by the Punjab police at around 6:45 am from village Rode after absconding for more than one month.
A group of pro-Khalistan protesters had attacked and damaged the Indian Consulate in San Francisco. Raising slogans, the protesters broke open the makeshift security barriers installed by the city police and put up two so-called Khalistani flags inside the Consulate premises. Two consulate personnel soon removed these flags.
The self-styled Sikh preacher managed to give police a slip after changing his vehicle on Saturday when police had launched a crackdown against him and his outfit 'Waris Punjab De'.
The Punjab government on Wednesday shifted six police officials, including the senior superintendent of police Jalandhar (Rural), in Jalandhar district, where radical preacher Amritpal Singh escaped the police dragnet earlier this month.
Police have been deployed outside the Mumbai office of a foundation run by controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik, whose 'hate speech' is reported to have inspired one of the five Bangladeshi militants involved in the recent Dhaka carnage.
"The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a globally respected institution and broadcaster whose news material I consume everyday. Secondly, all organisations have to obey the law of India. BBC is talking to Indian authorities about that," Ellis said.
'Whosoever mischievous elements, who have the support of ISI, and are trying to disturb peace in Punjab, their designs will not be allowed to succeed'
Hundreds of Sikh youths, led by the Dal Khalsa, were carrying Khalistani flags and photographs of damaged Akal Takht.
Officials said Papalpreet Singh is considered one of Amritpal Singh's mentors who had been advising him on various issues.
In a video message on Sunday, Mann also thanked the people of Punjab for their cooperation and said he does not want the youth to be misled by people with vested interests who run their shops by driving a campaign against the country.
The prime accused in the Mangaluru blast case, Mohammed Shariq, had professed the ideology of ISIS and shared the videos of the terror outfit with other accused in the case, police sources said.
Pro-Khalistani protestors tried to vandalise the Indian High Commission in London and pulled down the national flag while holding protests outside the high commission complex on March 19.
The investigating team, which has been granted custody of Shahrukh Saifi, had on April 12 taken him to Kannur for collecting evidence from the two train coaches of the Alappuzha-Kannur Executive Express train in which he had set fire to some passengers leading to the death of three persons, including a two-year old child.
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