Tag: Amritpal Singh Still At Large

Amritpal’s Escape, A Nelson’s Eye To Migrants Boat & A Bobbing Trump

By Mehnga Singh

One Man

India’s public services have never striven to become number one in competence. However the recent alleged escape of Amritpal must deserve India’s security services, the Punjab Police and the Central Reserve Paramilitary Forces a life time Olympics Gold in incompetence. One man with a turban, highly recognisable face and voice, slipped through a dragnet of 50,000 security and police services. Even the invisible man would have had some trouble, with an accidental bump into someone. There is no doubt the resourcefulness of Sikhs is legendary.

Amritpal Singh, who had started with a campaign against drugs started to get on the ‘Khalistan’ track. Suddenly the independent State-directed Indian media promoted him from a social campaigner to fiery preacher and then upscaled him to ‘State enemy Number 1’. All with rocket speed within a space of two months.

The Indian State doesn’t like anyone talking about freedom. Freedom was what Gandhi did and was extinguished at his funeral. Any resurgence is boxed in jails. Since the BJP follows the teachings of the sages, it isn’t clear where it says in Vedas or Shastras that no community can be given freedom. However that is a different matter. The BJP shastra is a unique one.

Amritpal says he will give himself up when he feels ready to do so. It seems he is running the game currently. At least for now Amritpal 1 and India 0.

Nelson’s Nation Fighting Dinghies

In the centre of London stands the proud statue of Lord Nelson, in the famous Trafalgar Square. Nelson had established the Naval Supremacy of Britain in the legendry battle at Cape Trafalgar against the mighty Spanish Armada and French Navy under Napolean.

Nelson’s was outnumbered in ships, outgunned in artillery and cannons and outmanned in number of men under arms. Yet his direct tactics won decisively. This was 1805. The national theme ‘Rule Britania, Britania rules the waves’ has been one of the most known and representative songs of Britain’s once powerful Navy.

Now Nelson’s legacy has met the rubber Dinghy. The entire might of Britain’s Naval Forces seems a bit outwitted by single rubber dinghy carrying unarmed desperate refugees fleeing persecution or food poverty. Using Nelson’s tactic, it aims straight for the coast.

Under Rishi the Marketman, the British Navy has been reduced to fighting these poor destitute people, many of them women and children, and still losing. Led by the Britain’s new ‘Superwoman’ version, Suella Braverman, the British Home Office has decided that the inflatable rubber Dinghy is the biggest threat to the ‘Realm’. How times change. Nelson is safe in Trafalgar Square. Perhaps it is time to build another column next to it with a dinghy on it.

The Bobbing Trump

Trumpustan is a unique country. However much conventional forces attack it, it has the ability to bob back into the centre of American politics. Everything has been thrown at it, yet it survives and thrives in the media, polls and among the hard core Republican voters in USA.

The latest weapons used to squeeze the genie of Trumpustan into a solid sealed cask has been an indictment and moves to arrest him. Trump wants the arrest to feature forced handcuffs. His supporters will go ballistic and tear open any political containment.

Even Trump’s competitors in the Republican Party are forced to support him. They have no choice. If they don’t, they will lose a huge base of Republican voters, which means the competition ends and Trump wins again.

Trumpustan is a political country within America. It wants to Make America Great Again. Although it is not clear where further Trumpustan wants to take it. The USA is the wealthiest, the mightiest and the most powerful country anyway. Perhaps competing against imagined Aliens in another galaxy?

Trumpustan is hard evidence of the cutting edge physicists theory that there are alternative universes and hence alternative realities. It doesnot matter what evidence exists in our simple world, Trumpustan dismisses it as ‘fake’, political and conspiratorial.

Trump is being charged with giving hush money to a so called prostitute named Stormy Daniel, before his last election, to keep her quiet about his brief dalliance. Stormy has stormed into limelight, the media and the political circus of USA by accusing Trump of giving her merely a whopping $125,000. She obviously wants to rake in more.

But in Trumpustan, she is a liar, the State is a liar and even the Judges appointed by Trump might be liars. Trumpustan carries on with god Trump continuing to forge alternative realities in which the American system become dysfunctional and illusionary.

Centre Swiftly Puts Activists, Journos In Jail; But Amritpal Was Given A Long Rope, Why?’

By LokMarg

Jagrup Singh Sekhon, a writer, academician & political observer, says the way Amritpal was given a free run despite openly challenging the State, raises questions behind his rise. His views

Undue publicity has been given to Amritpal Singh and there seems a pattern repeated from the past. The recent violence in Ajnala, Punjab, organized and executed by his followers, was instigated by him – that is clear. One should therefore look at the ideological lineage of this violence.

Deep Sidhu – who was he? Everybody knows what his political allegiance was. His pictures were all over the media with top leaders of the ruling party at the Centre and Sunny Deol, BJP MP from Gurdaspur, Punjab. One should check his role in the peaceful and protracted farmers’ movement in which tens of thousands of farmers from Punjab participated.

The core of the movement was led by progressive and democratic forces. It was a non-violent, mass movement from below. So, what was Deep Sidhu doing in this progressive and Left-backed movement with his allegiance so widely seen and proved?

When the farmers were detained on the Punjab and Haryana border, during their protest against the three controversial farm laws, how come Deep Sidhu was allowed to enter Delhi on the Republic Day, 26 November, 2020? His alleged instigations to his followers a day before the tractor march led to the unfortunate incident at the Red Fort. It is believed that it was an attempt to malign the peaceful movement and divert attention of the struggling farmers from their core demands.

These are the questions we must ask when we try to understand the current case of the rise of Amritpal Singh.

Who is Amritpal Singh and from where has he emerged suddenly? Why was he given so much media attention in the first instance despite his aggressive and provocative statements, including justifying violence? When he even challenged the government openly and brazenly, how come no action was taken? So many peaceful dissenters, journalists, human rights activists and critics of the BJP are languishing in prison! So how come Amritpal Singh was given such a long rope by the Indian State?

ALSO READ: ‘Sikhs Understand The Agenda of Amritpal Singh’

Religious polarization and communal politics are a thing of the past in contemporary Punjab which wants peace, and has been peaceful after suffering for so long under the spell of violence, from both sides, that is, State and non-State actors. The Sikhs have suffered the most, especially Jat Sikhs.

The Indian State has a massive, armed, security apparatus. Almost 50 per cent of the total area of Punjab is under the border belt, which directly comes under the control of Centre for security purposes. The State has a 553-km long international border with Pakistan which is one of the major reasons of the suffering and tragedy of the people of Punjab, as it made them the structural victims of the Partition of the subcontinent in 1947.

Akali Dal has always proclaimed itself as the protector of the Panth, but, now, it has lost its political relevance – it has been rejected by the people. The Congress has also been rejected by the people. The BJP was never a major player in the state. A section of supporters of the weakened Congress have thereby shifted to the BJP. In this context, AAP has emerged. However, it has no organizational base – which the BJP has. Hence, the BJP is desperately trying to enter Punjab – this way or that.

Even after the violence, aggressive and inflammatory statements, no case was registered against Amritpal Singh. Why? Just look at the extremely harsh steps they have taken against Rahul Gandhi! Anyone who dares to speak out is hounded in this country under the current dispensation in Delhi. So, why was Amritpal Singh being allowed to roam free and make provocative speeches and incite violence so brazenly – that is the main question!

The narrator is a former Professor in the Dept of Political Science, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar. He has co-authored Terrorism in Punjab – Understanding Grassroots Reality (along with Harish K Puri and Paramjit S Judge), Har Anand Publications

As told to Amit Sengutpa