Amritpal Singh: National issue but international ruckus

A 30-year-old controversial self-styled preacher named Amritpal Singh, whose rabid views and emulation of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, the late Khalistani separatist, has raised fresh concerns about the safety and well-being of the people of Punjab. In his speeches, Singh’s hardline views have much similarity to that of Bhindranwale, who demanded for a separate state for Sikhs, claiming it to be the only "permanent solution" to Punjab's problems, from water disputes to drug addiction to the deterioration of Punjabi culture. Amritpal Singh, a resident of Jallupur Khera in Punjab's Amritsar district, moved to Dubai in 2012, and worked as a truck driver. In August 2022, he returned to India from Dubai. A month later, Singh was appointed head of Waris Punjab De (Heirs of Punjab), an organisation formed by Deep Sidhu, an actor and activist who was arrested in connection with violence during a protest held by farmers. He died in a car accident in 2022. From a nonentity to a controversial figure, within a brief span of time, Amritpal’s fundamentalist views, has given him sudden popularity. The State of Punjab has been in turmoil for quite some time due to severe drug addiction issues, migration of Sikh youth in large numbers to many Western countries, especially Canada and Australia, which has disrupted families, and affected ties within the Sikh community; large scale Christian missionary activity by preachers from Kerala and Andhra, has all created a deep sense of insecurity in Punjab. Amritpal’s entry at this critical time, his advocacy of rigid adherence to Sikh tenets, as a panacea for all ills, has won him many followers, who move around carrying swords and guns. Investigations have revealed that Amritpal received lavish foreign funding which was routed through nearly 158 bank accounts!

What is causing concern is the agitation in many cities around the globe by some Sikh people, who have taken foreign citizenship. Agitations have been sparked in Canada, US, UK, and Australia. Other targeted geographies cover Kenya, Denmark, Italy, Malaysia, Singapore, the Netherlands, and New Zealand. The Indian High Commission in the UK was targeted in March 2023, by a group of UK Sikhs in the name of Khalistan. Communal tensions had rocked Leicester and Birmingham in the UK, and Hindu places of worship were attacked, and a group of Pakistani Muslim women staged a protest outside Indian High Commission in London in 2022.

Earlier in 2019, the Indian High Commission in London suffered an attack after protests over the abrogation of Article 370. A 10,000-strong mob of British Pakistanis marched in London in the ‘Kashmir Freedom March’. Canberra, San Francisco, Canadian city of Surrey in British Columbia province, have all seen mob violence by Khalistani separatists.

Similarly, Anti-CAA protests were orchestrated in places like Cape Town, Warsaw and Munich. University campuses of Columbia University in New York, Tampere University in Finland, Krakow in Poland, apart from universities in India like AMU, Jamia and JNU.

Why should India’s national issues create an international ruckus? This phenomenon is happening only against India. No other country is placed in such an awkward position. Coercion is being applied in India with a pronounced anti-Hindu bias. There appears to be an international lobby, hell-bent on obstructing every kind of reform, be it social, political or economic. The underlying intent is clear – obstruct India’s development in every possible way by creating an international ruckus in cities, towns, and university campuses. There are nearly 143,946 NGOs in India that are registered on the ‘NGO Darpan’ portal of Niti Aayog. A substantial number were receiving handsome foreign funding, which fortunately has been restricted by the Government. Any anti-national campaign could be activated within a short time. Consider the Shaheen Bagh obstruction that completely disrupted life in Delhi, that lasted from December 2019 to March 2020. Think of the staggering costs involved in conducting the agitation. As suspected, there was a narco-terrorism angle, substantiated by the seizure of 50 kg of Heroin worth Rupees one hundred crore!

There was a farmer’s agitation that was started in November 2020, which was the ultimate luxury agitation India has seen. ‘Luxury’ trolley used to accommodate the agitators would make headlines due to the facilities inside them including air conditioner, Wi-Fi system, expensive mattresses, TV screen, music system and other expensive accessories. The kind of expenditure splurged on this kind of extravaganza, can be imagined. It does not require much common-sense to understand that it was all foreign funded.

Now, a new strategy has been operationalized, whereby massive agitations would be sponsored on foreign soil, using Indian students and disgruntled expatriates. The obvious advantages are that no investigation agency can conduct any probe, money laundering laws can be evaded, and no narco-terrorism investigation. The nation needs to expect more such overseas jamborees to obstruct India’s development.

(The writer is the former director general of National Academy of Customs, Indirect Taxes and Narcotics.)