Don't create 'atmosphere of terror': Sikh body's warning as cops look for Amritpal Singh

Amid the continuing crackdown on radical Sikh preacher Amritpal Singh, Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh has urged the government to avoid creating an atmosphere of terror in Punjab.

The Akal Takht is the highest temporal seat for the Sikh community.

"The centre and state government should refrain from adopting the practice of coercion and illegal detention with the youth who live in a democracy and talk about their rights," Harpreet Singh said in a statement.

"Punjab has received deep wounds in the past and no government has taken steps to heal them. This context can't be ignored. There is deep dissatisfaction in the Sikh youth against the discrimination and excesses of successive governments," he was quoted saying by NDTV.

"The policy of religiously and politically weakening Sikhs has created a vacuum and unrest. This is neither in the interest of the government nor of Punjab. We all have to think about this," he added.

"Learning from the mistakes, the long-standing religious, political and economic issues of the Sikhs should be simplified and the feeling of alienation among the Sikhs should be removed," he further said.

The statement comes after the Punjab government launched a major crackdown against Amritpal, with police arresting 78 members of an outfit headed by him.

The elusive preacher himself, however, gave the police a slip and escaped their dragnet when his cavalcade was intercepted in Jalandhar district, according to a report in PTI.

During the chase, Amritpal Singh changed his route, staged crashes into motorcycle riders to throw police off his trail and escape during the car chase on a one-lane link road.

Speaking to the media, DIG Jalandhar Swapan Sharma revealed the 'Waris Punjab De' chief's car crashed to several motorbikes in a bid to divert the attention of the police and escape.

"While outrunning us he crashed into 5-6 motorbike riders, some were with the motive to divert us from the chase," he told ANI.

As the operation went underway, authorities stepped up security at several places and suspended internet and SMS services.