Crackdown on Amritpal’s aides: Detained under NSA, who is Bhagwant Singh alias ‘Pardhan Mantri Bajeke’?

A senior official with Moga police said Bhagwant Singh alias Pardhan Mantri Bajeke, who hails from Bajeke village in Moga district, was held Saturday by a police team which raided his house. This happened around the same time that state police teams were chasing Amritpal Singh’s convoy. Bhagwant Singh was held in a dramatic manner as he went live on Facebook after seeing police teams approaching. Moga police sources said that after his arrest, he was handed over to a team of Amritsar rural police which had procured his warrant under the NSA.

How was Bhagwant Singh held?

A senior police official from Moga said that on Saturday, when several checkpoints were installed to nab Amritpal Singh and his aides, a police team led by J Elanchezhian reached Bajeke village where Bhagwant Singh was working in the field. Seeing the police party, he went live on Facebook and posted several videos saying: “Police lag gai magar… oh vekho police aa gai mere magar khetan ch… Aah dekho ghera paaya chaarey banne.. lag gai police mere magar.. ehno vadh to vadh share karo… aa dekho 10-12 gaddian haan.. (The police are after me. See the police have arrived in my fields. They have surrounded me. Share this video. There are 10-12 vehicles).”

Why is he known as ‘Pardhan Mantri’?

According to the police, Bhagwant Singh was a small-time social media influencer and a farmer who used to create and upload videos on platforms such as TikTok, YouTube, Facebook and Instagram. He runs social media pages under the name ‘Pardhan Mantri Bajeke’ on which he uploads satirical videos on social and political issues.

In an interview given to a local web channel in 2020 after his videos started getting popular on social media, Bhagwant had said that he called himself “Pardhan Mantri (Prime Minister)” on social media as he wanted to get immensely popular. Bhagwant had said that he came across a social media page titled “Mukh Mantri (chief minister)” so he decided to go one step ahead and named his page Pardhan Mantri.

In the interview, he had also said that no one should have a problem if he was earning his livelihood through social media. While his Facebook page has 6.11 lakh followers, his Instagram and YouTube channels have been taken down.

Previous FIRs, opium recovery, attempt to murder

Moga police said Bhagwant Singh has previously been booked in eight FIRs including that for attempted murder, recovery of opium under the NDPS Act, flouting Covid-19 restrictions and land dispute, among others. Most of these FIRs were registered at Dharamkot police station in Moga and he was bailed out. In May 2015, he was booked for attempt to murder in a land dispute case and in April 2017, he was booked for the alleged recovery of 400 grams of opium.

Commenting on the FIRs registered against him, Bhagwant Singh had said in the interview that it was “normal” for those in the Jat community to have such cases against them. The cases against him were due to “jattan di ladaai (clashes involving the Jat community)”, he had said and added that he was booked for attempted murder after some rival groups tried to encroach his land. He had refuted allegations that he was into drugs.

Association with Amritpal Singh, fresh FIR for flaunting weapons

The police said Bhagwant started supporting and following Amritpal Singh last year after Waris Punjab De shot to fame among rural youths in Punjab. “Earlier he used to dress mostly in T-shirts, shirts and trousers without a turban but after getting associated with WPD, he had started wearing the Sikh traditional attire (chola) and a turban. He would carry swords and other weapons such as rifles. He would be present at almost every gathering organised by the WPD and would promote Amritpal on social media by sharing his videos,” said a police official.

Recently, after he got associated with the WPD, Bhagwant was booked in another FIR in November last year for flaunting weapons on social media. In the FIR, it was stated that he does not own any licensed weapon and was misleading youths by putting up his photos with weapons and flaunting them on social media. An FIR was registered against him under sections 29, 30 of the Arms Act and section 188 of the IPC at Dharamkot police station on November 22, 2022.

Alleged role in Ajnala violence

Moga police sources said Bhagwant was under the scanner for his alleged role in the Ajnala violence when Amritpal and his supporters attacked a police station using the Sri Guru Granth Sahib as a shield to get their aide freed in a kidnapping case. Amritpal’s uncle Harjit Singh, who also surrendered before the police on Monday, in an interview to a web channel, had said that “people like Pardhan Mantri Bajeke held by police were just common supporters” of WPD and “had no other role to play in the functioning of the organisation”.

Police dossier

According to police dossier, Bhagwant Singh (38), is class 8 graduate and owns 4 acres land at his village. He owns a house and is an active worker of Waris Punjab De. The dossier says that he is known for hurling abuses in his videos on social media and picks regular fights with fellow villagers. It adds that earlier Bhagwant Singh had chopped hair but after coming in contact with Amritpal, he practised Amrit Sanchar and started wearing turban. He also regularly visited the ongoing protest by Qaumi Insaaf Morcha at Mohali for release of Sikh prisoners. He does not own any licensed weapon and has no political background.