Dropping of NSA case against Amritpal aides: Why Punjab govt had few options

There are several reasons why the AAP government may have decided to drop the stringent NSA in the case.

The arrests

Amritpal and his nine associates were detained under the NSA between March 18, 2023, and April 23, 2023, with the Waris Punjab De head the last to be arrested.

The arrests followed the storming of the Ajnala Police Station on February 23, 2023, by Amritpal and his supporters demanding the release of one Lovepreet Singh Toffan, who was in judicial custody in a kidnapping case.

The government has said it doesn’t want the NSA reimposed again against Basant Singh, Bhagwant Singh, Gurmeet Singh Gill, Daljeet Singh Kalsi, Gurinderpal Singh Aujla, Harjeet Singh, and Kulwant Singh Dhaliwal alias Kulwant Singh. Apart from Amritpal, Varinder Pal Singh and Papalpreet Singh continue to face NSA charges, with the Punjab Police yet to clarify whether it would drop the same against them too.

NSA extension

A preventive detention law, the NSA allows the government to hold individuals without trial for up to 12 months to prevent actions seen as prejudicial to national security, public order, or essential supplies.

In the case of Amritpal’s aides, even when the NSA was invoked for the first time against them in 2023, and then extended in 2024, the state government struggled to provide the grounds for the same. The main reason behind their detention was their association with Amritpal, with the government essentially building its case against him and accusing the others of being his associates.

An appeal against the extension of the NSA for a second year against Amritpal’s associates is already pending in court, and the Punjab government may have chosen the safer route rather than risk the case being thrown out.
During his almost two-year-long NSA custody, Amritpal was booked for a murder in Faridkot. However, a case under a serious offence is yet to be registered against his associates. An example of a case they are facing is “tampering with a CCTV camera” at Dibrugarh Jail, which was registered against Basant Singh and Varinder Pal Singh. Both have secured bail in this.

Another accused, Daljit Singh Kalsi, also a movie actor, faced allegations of money laundering and links with the ISI. But no case related to these allegations was registered against Kalsi during his detention under the NSA.

Amritpal’s lawyer Inman Singh Khara, who is also the chief spokesman of the Akali Dal (Waris Punjab De) Party formed by supporters of the incarcerated MP, said, “The NSA against four of his aides will end on March 18, and two more on March 20. The others will be up for renewal on March 22 and March 26, and Amritpal on April 23.”

Khara added: “If the Punjab government has decided not to extend the NSA for the third time… the detainees must be brought back to Punjab.”

No release for them soon

The dropping of NSA charges does not mean Amritpal’s associates will be released any time in the near future. The Punjab Police will now prosecute them for other cases registered against them, the main being the Ajnala jail storming.

Since Amritpal also faces a murder case, registered last year, a release for him soon is even more unlikely.

The political aspect

Despite being behind bars and in faraway Dibrugarh, Amritpal had not just won from Khadoor Sahib, contesting as an Independent, in last year’s Lok Sabha elections, but his victory margin was also the largest in Punjab. The detention of Amritpal is believed to have ironically helped him, earning him sympathy votes of the public.

His family has been arguing that Amritpal’s victory was a vindication and enough grounds for his release. Amritpal’s pleas for parole to attend Parliament Sessions have not met with success either.

Even some Congress and Akali Dal leaders have spoken in favour of Amritpal, saying that while the government was within its rights to prosecute him in the cases registered against him, it was wrong to keep him and his associates detained far from the state under the NSA.

Some AAP leaders in private have also expressed discomfort with the NSA charges, and sought to blame the Union government for the decision. The fact that Assam is a BJP-ruled state has been cited by them as proof.

In the 10 months since Amritpal’s Lok Sabha win, his Akali Dal (Waris Punjab De) has kept its political activities alive. As part of its ongoing membership drive, the party recently put up counters during the Holla Mohalla festival in Anandpur Sahib and drew a decent response.
The party is expected to contest the coming Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) elections as well as the 2027 Punjab Assembly polls. Both scenarios, Amritpal’s release or his continued detention, could have an impact on Punjab’s Panthic politics, which is in a state of flux given the weakening of the Akali Dal and the infighting within.