Videos show military drills, arms training at Amritpal village: Khanna cops

KHANNA: Police on Thursday claimed that an arrested bodyguard of Khalistan propagator Amritpal Singh had made "startling" disclosures about the latter's alleged "Khalistan plan".

Addressing media here, Khanna SSP Amneet Kondal said bodyguard Tejinder Singh alias Gorkha Baba was arrested on Wednesday evening, after they got information about his association with Amritpal. She added that during interrogation, it came to the fore that the accused was a member of a close protection team (CPT) which had been entrusted with Amritpal's security.

Tejinder is also a member of Anandpur Khalsa Fauj (AKF), allegedly being raised by Amritpal to wage an armed struggle for the formation of a separate Khalistan state, the SSP said. As he was inducted as a gunman for Amritpal, Tejinder had been given weapons (marked as AKF) and attended firing practice and military drills at a firing range in Jallupur Khera, Amritpal's village, she added.


Tejinder stayed close to Amritpal when the Waris Punjab De chief led a mob of 2,000 people to storm the Ajnala police station and even accompanied him during his Khalsa Wahir drive. The SSP said an analysis of Tejinder's phone showed photos and videos of the state emblem and logo of the proposed Khalistan state, emblem of provinces called Faridkot, Kapurthala, Patiala, Jhind and more. She added they also found a photo of Khalistan dollars.

She added they found videos of youngsters being taught how to handle and load firearms at the same firing range near Jallupur Khera.



"These youngsters were later recruited in AKF," she said. A photo of a Pakistan national's driving licence was also found in the phone. "Evidence shows the sinister designs of this nascent militia force, Anandpur Khalsa Fauj (AKF), and the enormous threat it would have become. All of this has been averted by timely action of Punjab Police," she said. The SSP said the accused told them that all members of AKF were assigned belt numbers like AKF 3, AKF 56 and AKF 47, which were based on seniority/proximity to Amritpal. Tejinder had been assigned AKF 3, she added. This information was revealed by analysing two WhatsApp groups, AKF and Amritpal Tiger Force (Waris Punjab De's core member group) of which the accused was part of," she said.


The police officer claimed that the members were later paid salaries by Amritpal. She added that the members comprised youngsters who came for de-addiction, but were "indoctrinated" and given martial and weapons training. The SSP said Tejinder also was an addict and had gone to Jallupur Khera for de-addiction five months ago, before he was inducted as a gunman to Amritpal.

The officer said two months ago, Gurbhej Singh Bheja, who escaped from Nangal Ambian gurdwara on January 18 with the Waris Punjab De chief and three other associates, had arranged 10 bulletproof jackets, which had AKF markings and were seized by police when they began the crackdown on Waris Punjab De. "Videos of members showing expertise in weapon handling, assembling, disassembling and cleaning have been recovered," the SSP said.


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