Jailed Khalistani leader Amritpal Singh’s lawyer is seeking bail, and points to the support of the public for efforts to combat drug abuse across Punjab | Mint

Following Khalistani leader Amritpal Singh’s surprising electoral triumph from Punjab’s Khadoor Sahib Lok Sabha constituency, his lawyer said on Wednesday that the central and state authorities would be compelled to provide him relief.

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06/06/2024

Following Khalistani leader Amritpal Singh’s surprising electoral triumph from Punjab’s Khadoor Sahib Lok Sabha constituency, his lawyer said on Wednesday that the central and state authorities would be compelled to provide him relief.

Rajdev Singh Khalsa, who represents the imprisoned Singh who is seeking bail, highlighted Singh’s efforts in battling addiction to drugs in Punjab. Khalsa described the legal approach in the coming months, highlighting the need for release for Singh and expressed confidence that the support of the public will compel both BJP as well as AAP governments to provide relief, the newswire The ANIreported.

“The government must give them relief as there’s no alternative. The government is forced to grant relief and that includes both and the BJP the government as well as that of the AAP the government. Amritpal Singh was creating Punjab drug-free. People have endorsed that his arrest was unlawful and unjust,” Khalsa said, as reported by ANI..

Khalsa has criticized the reasons for Singh’s arrest which was orchestrated under the Bhagwant Mann government, calling the act as dishonest and insisting that the narrative of issues of law and order as well as tensions between Hindus and Sikhs were incorrect.

After winning his victory in the Khadoor Sahib Lok Sabha seat his wife and lawyer attended Dibrugarh Jail on Wednesday to meet the winner. Singh won a substantial advantage with 4,04,430 votes however his closest rival, Congress candidate Kulbir Singh Zira, got 2,07,310 votes.

Amritpal Singh was detained in the hands of Punjab Police in the month of April of last year, just weeks after evading police and being subject to the strict National Security Act invoked against him.

In the elections of 2019, Congress‘s Jasbir Singh Gill took the title of Khadoor Sahib. The 2024 candidates included the BJP’s Manjit Singh Manna the AAP’s Laljit Singh Bhullar, and Shiromani Akali Dal’s Virsa Singh Valtoha.

In the extremely intense 2024 Lok Sabha Elections, Congress held 7 seats from Punjab and matched the previous record. The BJP had a low turnout, not winning the majority of seats from Punjab while losing seats in Haryana which is where it previously won all the seats.

The BJP nearly tripled its vote share in Punjab but failed to retain its two seats that it taken in the 2019 elections. In Haryana the party was able to lose half of its seats, and 12 percent from its voting share went to Congress.

The Election Commission of India declared results for 542 out of 543 Lok Sabha constituencies, with the BJP getting 240 seats, in the constituency and Congress 99. This was a substantial decrease of seats for BJP from their 2019 total of 303 seats, and 282 seats that were won in 2014.

The Congress increased significantly by winning 99 seats to 52 seats in 2019 and 44 in 2014.

(With the inputs of ANI)

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Published: 06 Jun 2024, 09:50 AM IST