• Pro-Khalistan leader Amritpal Singh and Sheikh Abdul Rashid to take oath as MP tomorrow

    National
    Pro-Khalistan leader Amritpal Singh and Sheikh Abdul Rashid to take oath as MP tomorrow
    Amritpal Singh will not have access to mobile phones or the internet during his parole...

    Digital Desk: Waris Punjab De chief Amritpal Singh, the MP-elect of the Khadoor Sahib parliamentary constituency in Punjab, has been granted conditional custody parole for up to four days starting from July 5. Singh, who is currently lodged in Assam's high-security Dibrugarh Jail under the National Security Act (NSA), received the parole to take his oath as an MP.

    Amritsar deputy commissioner Ghanshyam Thori, authorized by the Punjab government to decide on Singh's parole, confirmed this on Wednesday. Thori stated that specific conditions governing the parole have been conveyed to the superintendent of Dibrugarh Jail.

    After meeting Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla at his residence in Delhi on Wednesday, Faridkot MP Sarabjit Singh announced that Amritpal Singh would take his oath as an MP on July 5 in the speaker’s chamber. The speaker’s office had sent a communication to the appropriate authorities to ensure that the jailed MP-elect was brought to Delhi on that day.

    According to sources, Amritpal Singh will not have access to mobile phones or the internet during his parole. He will also be prohibited from interacting with the media or being photographed.

    Amritpal, a pro-Khalistan leader, contested the Lok Sabha elections as an independent candidate from Khadoor Sahib and won by 197,120 votes. He defeated Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and Punjab cabinet minister Laljit Singh Bhullar, Akali stalwart Virsa Singh Valtoha, and senior Congress leader Kulbir Singh Zira.

    Sources also informed that a team of Amritsar police has already left for Dibrugarh to complete the necessary documentation for transporting Amritpal to Delhi and back. He is likely to be brought to Delhi in an Army aircraft.

    In a similar instance, a Delhi court recently granted 2-hour custody parole to Kashmiri leader Sheikh Abdul Rashid, alias Engineer Rashid, who is lodged in Tihar Jail, to take his oath as an MP on July 5. Rashid won the Lok Sabha elections as an independent candidate from Baramulla, defeating his nearest rival Omar Abdullah of the National Conference by a margin of over 200,000 votes.

    Additionally, three aides of Amritpal, also lodged in Dibrugarh jail under the NSA, have announced their candidacy for the upcoming assembly bypolls in Punjab from Gidderbaha, Barnala, and Baba Bakala seats.