Delhi court refuses to grant transit remand of KTF operatives Amritpal and Amrik Singh to Punjab Police

New Delhi, June

A Delhi court on Monday refused to grant transit remand of two alleged operatives of the banned terrorist outfit ‘Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF)’ to the Punjab Police, saying the application was “belated”.

Duty Metropolitan Magistrate Isha Singh noted the accused were to be produced before the court concerned in Punjab today on a production warrant it had issued earlier.

The judge said the application was filed today at 11:55 AM and, even if the application to take the accused to Punjab was allowed, it would not be possible to produce them in the court before 5 PM.

“If the accused had to be produced before the court concerned in Jagraon, Punjab, the investigating officer should have filed the application in time… This application is belated,” the judge said.

The accused — Amritpal Singh, alias Ammy, and Amrik Singh — allegedly associated with Canada-based terrorist Arshdeep Dhalla, are currently in judicial custody in a case lodged by the NIA.

The Punjab Police had sought their transit remand in a case of extortion registered at the Jagraon Sadar police station at Ludhiana.

The Punjab Police had registered a case under sections related to extortion, Arms Act and the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) in January 2023.

They were arrested at the Indira Gandhi International Airport here by the NIA under anti-terror law UAPA after their deportation from Manila, the capital of the Philippines, on May 19 for their alleged involvement in recruiting young men for KTF. They were also accused of smuggling and procuring arms and ammunition and raising funds for the organisation.

On June 6, the court had remanded the two in judicial custody.