CHANDIGARH: The Punjab police have arrested Harpreet Singh, the brother of pro-Khalistan MP Amritpal Singh, and another person under the NDPS Act on drug-related charges after methamphetamine also known as crystal meth was recovered from them.
Sources said Harpreet Singh and Lovepreet Singh were arrested from the Phillaur check post as they were travelling on the Phillaur-Amritsar highway after four to five grams of methamphetamine was recovered from them. Both were sent for a medical examination late in the night and they tested positive for the drug.
Another person Sandeep Arora of Hebowal in Ludhiana district has also been booked in the case. A case under the NDPS Act has been registered at Phillaur police station.
Sources said that during the search, a half-burnt Rs 20 note was recovered from the pocket of Harpreet’s shirt which was rolled into a pipe, while 4 grams of meth was recovered from another pocket. A digital weighing scale was also recovered from their possession. In a purse kept by the driver’s seat, a silver paper (used to inhale drugs) and lighters were seized. Harpreet also faces charges in previous cases. He had been arrested in a case concerning seizure of weapons from Shahkot last year, along with his aides, following the crackdown on Amritpal.
Confirming the development, Senior Superintendent of Police of Jalandhar (Rural) Ankur Gupta said that a suspicious car with tinted glasses was parked on the side of the national highway in Phillaur. He said police found 4 gm of meth with the duo who were identified as Harpreet Singh and Lovepreet Singh. "When they were questioned, they disclosed that they bought the drugs from Sandeep Arora in Ludhiana for which payment was made through Paytm," he said.
Gupta said that they had bought the drugs for their consumption and were going to Amritsar from Ludhiana when they were arrested.
Amritpal's father Tarsem Singh alleged that the arrest was an attempt to defame his family. "It is part of a larger conspiracy to defame the family which is fighting against the drug menace, so it is troubling the government. They have failed to nail the big fish in the illegal drug trade. They are working under the influence of drug cartels. The government and police have all the means to defame anyone and anytime they want to," he alleged.
Interestingly before Amritpal was arrested on charges of National Security Act (NSA), he had initiated an anti-drug campaign, including opening a de-addiction center in his village.
In the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections, Amritpal had won with the highest margin in Punjab. Originally from Jallupur Khera village in Amritsar, he had lived in Dubai before returning to Punjab in 2022 after the death of Punjabi actor Deep Sidhu who was running the organization 'Waris Punjab De.’ Amritpal now heads the group.