Amritpal Singh Sandhu
Amritpal Singh Sandhu (born 17 January 1993) is a Sikh preacher and politician. He is serving as a Member of Parliament in the Lok Sabha representing the constituency of Khadoor Sahib since 2024.
After living in Dubai for a decade, he returned to Punjab in September 2022, having been controversially appointed as the leader of Waris Punjab De and started a campaign which encouraged youth to refrain from drugs, adopt a traditionalist form of Sikhism, and advocated a sovereign Punjabi Sikh nation state called Khalistan.[1]
Political career
Amritpal Singh has been elected as a Member of Parliament from Khadoor Sahib Lok Sabha constituency in 2024 Indian general elections.
Early life
Amritpal Singh grew up as a resident of Jallupur Khera, a village in the Baba Bakala tehsil of Amritsar district of Punjab, India into the Sandhu clan of Jatt Sikhs. He was the youngest of the three children of Tarsem Singh and Balwinder Kaur.[2] His family is said to be very religious. His uncle Harjit Singh Sandhu was the sarpanch (head of village) for 10 years before moving to the United Kingdom.[40][41]
After passing the 10th class, Amritpal enrolled in a diploma course in mechanical engineering at Lord Krishna Polytechnic College in Kapurthala in 2009. He dropped out after three years, never having completed the course.
In 2012, he moved to Dubai in UAE to join his family's transport business.
Amritpal often spoke about issues concerning Punjab on social media. In 2019, he started supporting the farmers' protest and also became a vocal supporter of Deep Sidhu. His social media reach multiplied after he got associated with Sidhu. He travelled to India to support the protest. At that time, he was a Sahajdhari. After the farm laws were withdrawn, he returned to Dubai.[3]
Personal life
On 10 February 2023, Amritpal married Kirandeep Kaur, a native of Jalandhar district who used to live in the United Kingdom. Amritpal claimed it to be an instance of "reverse migration" and a message encouraging Punjabis to return to Punjab and settle there. As of March 2023, she resides in Jallupur Khera, the native village of Amritpal Singh.
External links
References
- ↑ "'Amritpal Justifies Demand of Sikh Nation Against the Backdrop of Demand for a Hindu Nation'". The Wire.
- ↑ "Preacher, 'influencer', ideologue: Meet Amritpal Singh, head of Waris Punjab De". The Indian Express. 8 October 2022.
- ↑ "Preacher, 'influencer', ideologue: Meet Amritpal Singh, head of Waris Punjab De". The Indian Express. 8 October 2022.