Amid crackdown on Amritpal, Akal Takht issues ultimatum: ‘Release arrested Sikh youths within 24 hours, revoke NSA or we take campaign to world stage’

The Jathedar of Akal Takht, the highest temporal seat of Sikhs, had convened a special gathering of Sikh organizations, including intellectuals, lawyers, journalists, religious and social leaders to discuss the “atmosphere of restlessness in the minds of Sikhs” due to the prevailing situation in Punjab following the March 18 action against elements of Waris Punjab De headed by Amritpal Singh.

Harpreet Singh also attacked certain TV channels, accusing them of promoting hate propaganda against Sikhs by describing the youths who have been held as separatists. “Legal action will be taken by Sikh organisations against the character assassination of Sikhs by the national media,” he added.

“During police press conferences, the flag and symbols of Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s Khalsa Raj and Sikh princely states were wrongly propagated as the flag of Khalistan. The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) is ordered to take strict legal action against the police officers concerned. Sikhs should put Khalsa Raj flag on their vehicles and houses in order to counter the official propaganda against flags and symbols related to Sikh heritage,” he said.

Harpreet Singh demanded that “the government should immediately withdraw the NSA invoked against several arrested Sikh youths and those who have been sent to Dibrugarh jail in Assam should be brought back to Punjab so that law can take its own course”. He said it would be wrong to say that there was a threat to national security due to the Sikhs who have been detained. He also demanded that police immediately release the seized vehicles of the Sikhs who were protesting peacefully at ‘Harike Headworks’, and activate immediately the closed web channels and social media accounts”.

The Jatehdar claimed that around 400 Sikh youths had been “arrested” and 198 had been released. But the Sikh community wanted release of all arrested Sikhs, he said.

The Punjab Police have invoked the NSA against Amritpal and eight of his arrested associates who are now lodged in Assam’s Dibrugarh Jail. He and his associates have been booked under several criminal cases related to spreading disharmony among classes, attempt to murder, attack on police personnel and creating obstructions in the lawful discharge of duty by public servants.

The Jathedar said “Khalsa Waheer” (religious pilgrimage) will also be taken out under the aegis of Akal Takht.
Incidentally, Amritpal was on way to launch a Khalsa Waheer on March 18 when got to know about the heavy police presence and managed to gave the forces the slip.

Without naming anyone, Singh said the NSA should also then be invoked against those who speak about ‘Hindu Rashtra.’ “On one hand announcements are made openly to create a Hindu nation by suppressing the minorities, but on the other, no action is being taken against those making such provocative statements. The government doesn’t think twice while imposing black laws on the Sikhs who express their views democratically,” he said, adding it would extend all help to the “innocent Sikhs” who have been held in this matter.

SGPC president Harjinder Singh Dhami announced a panel of lawyers who will work to get the NSA repealed and provide more legal assistance to the Sikh youths who were “victims of government coercion”.

Dhami also appealed to the families of the arrested Sikh youths to immediately contact the SGPC for getting the legal aid.

Various speakers at the gathering stressed on the need to sort out things at diplomatic level against the “injustice being meted out to the Sikh community”.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said he has asked the director general of police to release those who were taken into preventive custody and their involvement to any anti-national activity was not found. On the sidelines of an event in Jalandhar, Mann, however, said strict action will be taken against whosoever tries to disturb peace in the state.

Earlier, Aam Aadmi Party’s chief state spokesperson Malvinder Singh Kang said asked the Jathedar to ensure that “the Sikh preachers only worked honestly towards propagating the message of Gurus and not mislead the youths”. Following a police crackdown against Amritpal and his associates, Punjab Police Sunday said it has released 197 persons out of total 353 taken into preventive custody on apprehension of breach of peace and disturbance of law and order.