Amritpal Singh's 350 km 'Escape Route'
6 Places in 2 Days. But Where Is He Now?
On 18 March, Punjab Police and central agencies launched a crackdown on Waris Punjab De chief Amritpal Singh and his associates. But ten days later, there is still no sign of where Amritpal Singh actually is.
Some of his sympathisers claim that Amritpal Singh had already been detained by the police and that they aren't making it public as yet. Amritpal Singh's uncle Harjit Singh had also made this claim before surrendering to the police.
However, the Punjab Police has consistently maintained that Amritpal Singh is not in their custody.
Yet, they have been providing detailed updates on what they believe were Amritpal Singh and his aide Papalpreet Singh's whereabouts since the crackdown.
Through the course of this multimedia immersive, we will try and trace the alleged 'escape route' used by Amritpal Singh, based on the locations shared by the police.
We will also see what questions this route answers and all that it leaves unanswered.
The Route
Now, this is only an approximate route traced based on the six locations provided by the police.
It is quite possible that if Amritpal Singh and Papalpreet Singh did indeed go to these locations, they could have used alternate routes and inner roads to get there, staying away from GT Road.
But this does give an idea of the extent to which they may have travelled and the direction they allegedly went according to the police.
Jallupur Khera
The route begins at Amritpal Singh's village of Jallupur Khera in Punjab's Amritsar district.
Mehatpur
Here, in Jalandhar district's Mehatpur village, Amritpal Singh allegedly switched from a Mercedes SUV to a Maruti Brezza.
Nangal Ambian
In the village of Nangal Ambian in Jalandhar's Shahkot, Amritpal Singh and Papalpreet Singh allegedly took shelter in a gurdwara here, changed clothes and departed on a bike.
Bilga
Near Bilga, a village just around 10 km away from the city of Nurmahal in Jalandhar, Amritpal and Papalpreet allegedly tried to make arrangements for crossing the Sutlej river.
Hardy's World, Ladhowal
After finally crossing the river via an old bridge, they are said to have been seen near Ladhowal, on the outskirts of Ludhiana city, at around 9:45 pm on 18 March.
Hargobind Nagar, Patiala
On 19 March, Amritpal Singh and Papalpreet Singh allegedly took refuge for a few hours at the residence of one Balbir Kaur in Patiala's Hargobind Nagar area. The police claim to have found CCTV evidence here.
Watch the following video carefully from around the one-minute mark.
Shahabad, Haryana
After a few hours in Patiala, they allegedly travelled to Shahabad in Haryana by bus. There, they spent the night of 19 March at the residence of one Baljit Kaur. They left from Shahabad on 20 March, according to the police.
Unanswered Questions
If the locations provided by the police are true, where did Amritpal go after 20 March? A number of media reports citing 'sources' have claimed that he could be in Uttarakhand, that he passed through Delhi's Inter State Bus Terminal dressed as a Sadhu, that a bus dropped him off somewhere on the Haryana-Rajasthan border. One report even said that he was in Amritsar, completely in the opposite direction of the route he allegedly followed.
Why have there been no confirmed locations provided by the police for after 20 March?
Is the CCTV evidence really conclusive?
The CCTV footage from Shahabad is of a tall man walking under an umbrella. It doesn't conclusively prove that it is Amritpal. The alleged footage from Patiala, at least what has been shown in the media, also isn't particularly clear.
How did Amritpal Singh manage to cover all this distance without being noticed?
As per the locations provided by the police and the route we traced, Amritpal Singh and Papalpreet Singh may have covered at least 350 kilometres spanning about four districts in Punjab and two in Haryana on 18 and 19 March.
The lack of clarity regarding Amritpal Singh's whereabouts has given rise to theories that he could even be in the captivity of central agencies.
Prominent crime journalist Ritesh Lakhi suggested as much in his latest video on the issue.
The bottom line being — the details of the alleged 350 kilometre route raise more questions than they provide answers for.
And at the heart of all those unanswered questions lies the biggest one of them all — where is Amritpal Singh?
CREDITS
Reporter
Aditya Menon
Creative Producer
Naman Shah
Graphic Designer
Kamran Akhter
Production Assistant
Somayya Shakir
Creative Director
Meghnad Bose
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