Anger mounts among Sikh diaspora as Indian police cut internet in search for fugitive separatist preacher Amritpal Singh
- Police said Amritpal Singh has been on the run since Saturday when officers tried to block his motorcade and arrest him
- Singh is trying to revive a separatist movement calling for an independent Sikh homeland in Punjab
A manhunt launched by police against a separatist leader in the Indian state of Sikh-majority Punjab that resulted in mass arrests, deployment of paramilitary forces and an internet blackout affecting millions of people has sparked anger among the Sikh diaspora.
The pursuit of Amritpal Singh, a self-styled Sikh preacher, was triggered after Indian police accused the 30-year-old and his supporters of creating discord. Police said Singh has been on the run since Saturday when officers tried to block his motorcade and arrest him.
Sukhchain Singh Gill, the inspector general of police for Punjab, said on Wednesday that police have so far arrested 154 of Singh’s supporters and seized 10 guns and several rounds of ammunition.
Singh made national headlines in February when his supporters attacked a police station in Punjab demanding the release of a jailed aide.
Thousands of people were killed during a bloody insurgency movement in Punjab state in the 1980s and early 1990s, when the call for Khalistan was at its peak.
As police intensified the search for Singh, Sikhs living overseas have been protesting against what they claim are the arbitrary arrests of more than 100 of his alleged followers, and the internet shutdown that led to the loss of communication with their family members in Punjab.
