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30-03-2023
Bureau Report + BBC Punjabi
NEW DELHI: Rumours are circulating in India about the whereabouts of a controversial self-styled Sikh preacher, more than 10 days after he went on the run.
A massive operation is under way to find Amritpal Singh, who is wanted in many cases including attempted murder.
His calls for an independent Sikh homeland have riled the authorities.
Reports say he has been seen in at least four Indian cities, including the capital Delhi, since eluding arrest in Punjab state on 18 March.
Nepal put him on a surveillance list this week at India’s request.
On Tuesday night, Punjab police searched houses in a village in Hoshiarpur district, triggering media speculation that he may still be in the state.
Earlier in the day, the state government had told the Punjab and Haryana high court that the police were “close to catching” Singh.
The manhunt has dominated Indian headlines over the past fortnight as police swarm state borders, comb the streets and scour surveillance footage in search of the man whose radical views stoked fears of a renewed phase of violence in Punjab.
Singh, who suddenly rose to national attention in February after his followers stormed a police station, says he supports Khalistan, or a separate Sikh homeland. His rapid rise revived memories of the violent insurgency in Punjab in the 1980s in which thousands were killed.
The search for Singh, spanning four Indian states as well as neighboring Nepal, has been full of twists and turns, including rumours of disguises and dramatic escapes.
Punjab police first tried to arrest Singh on 17 March, weeks after he and hundreds of supporters descended on a police station, demanding the release of an arrested aide. After the incident, local police charged him with several cases including attempt to murder and spreading hatred and disharmony.
The bid to arrest him failed though hundreds of police personnel were deployed, Singh managed to get away in a high-speed car chase which was livestreamed by some of his supporters.
Police said Singh had been travelling in a Mercedes SUV when the chase first began, but that he later shifted to a smaller car and finally to a bike. (Since then, senior police officials have said several times that Singh is travelling around the country in disguise.)
Within hours of Singh’s escape, authorities blocked internet services in Punjab where 27 million people live restricted the movement of people, and arrested hundreds of Singh’s supporters. They also charged him under the stringent National Security Act. The restrictions were eventually eased but the search operation has continued. BBC 
Punjabi spoke to several people who said that the heavy police presence in their towns and villages had affected their mental health and livelihoods. The Twitter accounts of several journalists and activists have also been blocked in India including, briefly, that of BBC Punjabi.
On 21 March, Punjab police released CCTV footage that purportedly showed Singh wearing a disguise while travelling on a motorcycle. The same day, police also released seven photos of him in different outfits including an AI-generated version, which shows him without his long beard asking people to watch out for him.
On 24 March, several media reports said the preacher had been spotted in Delhi.
News agency ANI quoted unnamed police sources who said that Singh, accompanied by an aide, had been seen at a prominent bus terminal disguised as a sadhu, or Hindu preacher.
Delhi and Punjab police teams then launched a search operation in the capital and its borders and arrested more people, believed to be Singh’s supporters.
