Khalistani separatist Amritpal Singh, who was arrested by Punjab Police on Sunday morning at Punjab’s Moga, was shifted to Assam later in the day amid high security.
The Waris Punjab De chief has been shifted to the central jail in Assam’s Dibrugarh, said officials familiar with the matter. Dibrugarh central jail is considered the most secure prison in Assam, where nine of Singh’s associates, including family members, have been lodged and charged under the National Security Act (NSA).
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“Singh arrived at Mohanbari airport in Dibrugarh and has been shifted to the central jail. Security arrangements in and around the jail had already been beefed up,” said Dibrugarh superintendent of police (SP) Shwetank Mishra.
A special Indian Air Force (IAF) plane carrying Singh, who was accompanied by Punjab police officials, from Amritsar reached Mohanbari airport around 2:20pm and from there, he was taken to Dibrugarh jail under tight security in a convoy of vehicles.
Officials said that following routine medical checkups he was kept in a solitary cell of the jail away from his associates. He will be interrogated by officials from various central intelligence agencies in the coming days, they said.
The radical preacher came under the police radar following the storming of Ajnala police station on February 23. He had been evading Punjab police since March 18, the day he went into hiding and after 35 days of a massive manhunt, he was arrested on Sunday in Moga district’s Rode village.
Prior to Singh’s arrival, senior police and district officials took stock of security arrangements in the jail. Additional CCTV cameras have been installed in the jail premises, which will be manned by both state and central police personnel, said jail officials.
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Papalpreet Singh, a close aide of Singh, who was arrested in Punjab’s Hoshiyarpur on April 10, was the last one to have been brought to jail.
On March 19, the first batch of four Amritpal Singh aides were brought to Dibrugarh and housed there. Two days later, his uncle Harjeet Singh and two others were also brought to jail. Later, Singh’s gunman Varinder Johal joined the others.
On Wednesday, five members of the National Security Advisory Board (NSAB) arrived in Dibrugarh to interact with the nine jailed aides of Amritpal Singh.
