Who is Amritpal Singh, the radical Sikh leader from Indian state of Punjab dubbed as 'Bhindranwale 2.0'?

The clashes between followers of Sikh leader Amritpal Singh and police in the northern Indian state of Punjab on 23 February brought back dark memories of the violence in the state which was thwarted by Operation Blue Star in 1984.

In the 1980s, Sikh radical preacher Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, along with his armed Sikh supporters, took residence inside the Golden Temple in Amritsar and agitated for the so-called 'Khalistani' cause, a demand for a separate state for Sikhs.

The then Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi gave nod for Operation Blue Star, and Indian Army thwarted Bhindranwale's aspirations. However, the army operation resulted in anger that eventually led to the assassination of Indira Gandhi, and subsequent anti-Sikh riots in Delhi.

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Flash-forward to 2023. The images of supporters of Amritpal Singh storming Ajnala police station near Amritsar stirred concerns in the state, with many observers expressing fear regarding Singh's rise along the lines of Bhindranwale. His violent supporters entered the police station and demanded the release of Lovepreet Singh, one of their aides arrested in an alleged kidnapping case.

Lovepreet Singh alias Toofan, himself a Sikh preacher and farmer, was arrested on 17 February in an alleged kidnapping case. The Punjab police released Toofan from Amritsar Central jail on Friday. The release took place after a court in Ajnala issued orders to discharge him in the wake of an application extended by the police.

The recent violence and collapse of law and order have ripped open the wounds that the state suffered in the 1980s.

Who is Amritpal Singh?

Singh, a resident of Jallupur Khera in Amritsar, is the youngest of three children of Tarsem Singh and Balwinder Kaur.

He worked as a dispatcher with his family-owned transport business for a decade.

Singh's rise in the Punjab state has links with late lawyer-actor-turned-activist Deep Sidhu. Sidhu founded an organisation in 2021 with the name Waris Punjab De, which translates to 'the heirs of Punjab.It reportedly acts as a "pressure group" which "protects and fights for the rights of Punjab and raises social issues."

Sidhu mostly came to limelight at the time of farmer protest in India where he was accused of conspiring to hoist a Sikh flag at Red Fort on Republic day in 2021.

The 37-year-old died in a car crash on the Kundli-Manesar-Palwal highway near Sonepat on 15 February 2022.

After Sidhu's death, Waris Punjab De was without a chief.

This is when the radical leader Amritpal Singh comes into the frame. The 29-year-old man who was working in a company called Sandhu Cargo which is linked to his close relative in Dubaireturned from there to India in September 2022 to lead the organisation.

Eight months after Sidhu's death, Amritpal said, “It is a platform for those who are not satisfied with the social reality of Punjab in the current scenario. It is a social platform. We take everything to elections but I want to clarify that it is a social platform. It is not a poll gimmick. We are not supporting any political party."

"Hindu, Muslim, Sikh or Christian, it is for all those who will fight with us for the rights of Punjab. Before 1947, we lived together in harmony, but the British snatched that brotherhood from us. Our Gurus fought against casteism," he added.

The farmers protest

Indian farmers took to the streets and protested against the now-repealed agri laws in 2020-2021. They camped in national capital Delhi for several months.
This is the time when Singh started to gain traction. He started raising his voice online and lent support to the agitation.

He remained controversial as he spoke on social media, making comments on political parties and reportedly even some pro-Khalistan groups, like Dal Khalsa.

The Waris Punjab De chief is sometimes reportedly called “Bhindranwale 2.0” in Punjab.

India's position on Khalistan movement

The Indian government has always had a steadfast position on the Khalistan issue. Indian Ministry of External Affairs has also been flagging this as a national security concern for New Delhi.

Recently, India raised this with Canada and called the government to take stringent action against those who continue to pose threats to the Indian diaspora and trying to evoke sympathy amoung sections of the Sikh population for the Khalistani cause.

Indian Ministry of Home Affairs raised concerns to the Punjab government over alleged suspicious activities of Amritpal last year.

On the day of release of Toofan, Amritpal Singh told the ANI news agency, “Our aim for Khalistan shouldn’t be seen as evil and taboo...It’s an ideology and ideology never dies. We are not asking for it from Delhi."

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, without naming Amritpal, tweeted, "Those who take the Guru Granth Sahib [the holy scripture of Sikhism] to police stations as a shield cannot be called 'waris' of Punjab and Punjabiyat in any way."

Former Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh said, “People of Punjab want to know who are the forces behind this youth who had recently moved to Punjab from Dubai…it is the duty and responsibility of the state government to confront such forces and their activities."

Meanwhile, Deep Sidhu’s family refrained from making any comments on Amritpal and the recent violent activities in Punjab.

They said that they had no clue how Singh took the reigns of Waris Punjab De.

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