Hunt to nab 'Waris Punjab De' chief Amritpal Singh intensifies, SUV seized

Aparna Banerji

Jalandhar, March 19

Despite launching the statewide search operation, the Punjab Police have failed to get hold of ‘Waris Punjab De’ chief Amritpal Singh, who was able to hoodwink cops in Mehatpur yesterday.

Sources confirmed that a manhunt was underway in Amritsar and Moga districts, besides Shahkot-Malsian and Mehatpur in Jalandhar district to nab Amritpal.

The Jalandhar police today impounded an SUV (ISUZU) from Salema village in Mehatpur.

DIG Swapan Sharma said, “We chased vehicles of Amritpal and his aides. The SUVs of the escaping party hit many vehicles on their way. We managed to capture three of their vehicles. Cops intercepted 10 of his aides, but three managed to escape. We are also on a lookout for the Mercedes involved in the incident.”

From the SUV impounded today, cops recovered a 15 bore rifle, 56 cartridges and a sharp-edged weapon. Two number plates were also found in the car. The police said this was the same vehicle from which a video had gone viral yesterday, wherein Amritpal’s associate could be heard asking his supporters to reach Shahkot.

The police said the car (Mercedes) which Amritpal was driving during the chase was yet to be recovered. So far, three vehicles have been impounded by the police.

The police said 10 people were arrested in total from Mehtapur in Jalandhar on Saturday of whom three escaped. The DIG said Amritpal had not been booked under the NSA so far. He said the seized weapons were illegal and eight FIRs had been registered in the case.

Chased in 3 dists

• The police on Sunday impounded a black SUV (ISUZU) used by Amritpal and his aides
• A 15 bore rifle (unlicensed), 56 live cartridges and a sharp-edged weapon were seized from the SUV
• A total of 10-12 police vehicles chased Amritpal’s cavalcade across three districts – Jalandhar, Amritsar and Moga
• The entire search operation went on for 7-8 hours within a radius of around 15 km
• Cops came close to intercept him at Mehatpur, but he took advantage of crowd