Lok Sabha MP and Shiromani Akali Dal-Amritsar (SAD-Amritsar) chief Simranjit Singh Mann in a recent statement said that fugitive pro-Khalistani leader Amritpal Singh should not surrender, but instead flee to Pakistan.
Mann said that Amritpal Singh's feeling toward Pakistan is "justified by Sikh history" and commented, "We went to Pakistan in 1984 too, haven't we?" Singh's remarks referred to the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.
Simranjit's statement came as Intel inputs say Amritpal could surrender before Baisakhi eve at the Akal Takht at the Golden Temple in Amritsar, Takht Damdama Sahib in Bathinda or Takht Sri Keshgarh Sahib in Anandpur Sahib in Rupnagar district.
Meanwhile, on Thursday, a day after daring the Punjab police to arrest him, the radical preacher surfaced in a fresh video asserting he was not a fugitive and would soon appear before the world.
A day earlier, a video had appeared on social media with the pro-Khalistan preacher asking the jathedar (or chief) of the highest temporal body of Sikhs to summon a congregation of the faithful to discuss issues concerning the community.
The purported video surfaced hours after his audio clip came out on social media in which he debunked speculation he was negotiating his surrender.
"Those who feel that I have turned fugitive and I have left my associates, they should not keep this illusion in their mind. I do not fear death," he said in the video in Punjabi.
"And soon will appear before the world and will also be amongst the 'Sangat'," Amritpal Singh said.
Police have stepped up security in and around Amritsar and Bathinda amid reports that Amritpal Singh may surrender after entering any of the two Sikh shrines - Golden Temple in Amritsar and Takht Sri Damdama Sahib in Bathinda.
(with PTI inputs)
