Amritpal Singh's accomplice Joga Singh arrested

Chandigarh: Punjab police is said to have nabbed the radical preacher Amritpal Singh’s close aide Joga Singh in Ludhiana district on Friday.

Joga Singh was driving Innova used by Amritpal to escape

It was Joga Singh who was driving the Innova car in which pro-Khalistan radical preacher Amritpal and his aide Papalpreet were travelling and he had succeeded in giving police a slip in Kapurthala district on Tuesday. They had later abandoned the said car near Mernaian village in Hoshiarpur district.

According to information, Joga, subsequent to his arrest, is reported to have told the police that Amritpal had given his mobile phone so as to mislead the chasing police teams.

Police step up searches in and around Ludhiana

Meanwhile, the police has also stepped up searches in and around Ludhiana district, also with the help of drones to ascertain the possible escape routes in villages in the area, to track down Amritpal, who heads "Waris Punjab De" (WPD) outfit.

It may be recalled that Amritpal, his close aide Papalpreet Singh had managed to escape police dragnet and were chased in the car driven by Joga Singh on Tuesday night near Phagwara town of Kapurthala district. Having left this vehicle, they reportedly travelled in another vehicle since.

Story so far

Amritpal has been on the run since March 18 when the state police had launched a massive crackdown on him and several of his supporters and members of WPD. On February 23, he along with hundreds of his supporters had stormed into Amritsar’s Ajnala police station for the release of Toofan Singh, one of his close aides, who had been arrested in an alleged case of assault and abduction, while the police remained a mute spectator. This event had put the state government and police in poor light.