The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Friday directed the Punjab government to decide within seven working days on the parole representation of jailed Khadoor Sahib MP Amritpal Singh, who seeks temporary release to attend the upcoming Budget Session of Parliament.
The Division Bench led by Chief Justice Sheel Nagu disposed of Amritpal’s writ petition with a direction to the Punjab Home Secretary to take a decision on the application dated January 17, 2026, and communicate the outcome forthwith to the petitioner and his counsel.
Amritpal Singh, currently detained under the National Security Act (NSA), 1980, in Assam’s Dibrugarh jail, has invoked Section 15 of the NSA, which allows for temporary release of a detainee, seeking permission to participate in the Parliament session beginning January 28.
The high court noted that the preventive detention order was passed by the Amritsar District Magistrate on April 17, 2025, and since this authority functions under the state government, the State of Punjab is the “appropriate government” under Section 2(1)(a) of the NSA empowered to consider such a request.
“The state government is the competent authority under Section 2(1)(a) of the National Security Act, 1980, to decide the temporary release of a detainee under Section 15,” the court observed.
Amritpal Singh (33), leader of the Waris Punjab De group, was arrested from Rode village in Moga on April 23, 2023, after a month-long manhunt. He had eluded capture since March 18, 2023, when he escaped during a police crackdown in Jalandhar, amid a dramatic chase involving vehicle switches and disguise changes.
His arrest followed the Ajnala police station incident of February 23, 2023, where Amritpal and armed supporters stormed a police station, demanding the release of an associate.
In 2024, while in jail, Amritpal contested and won the Lok Sabha elections from Khadoor Sahib as an independent candidate.
His NSA detention was extended in April 2025, even as nine other associates held in the same Assam jail were shifted back to Punjab. These associates were arrested in connection with the Ajnala incident.
Amritpal had earlier sought parole to attend the 2025 Winter Session of Parliament, but that plea became infructuous as the session concluded before arguments concluded.
In his present plea, Amritpal said he wants to raise urgent constituency matters such as the 2025 floods in Punjab, rising drug abuse, and developmental issues of Khadoor Sahib in the House.
