Amritpal’s grandmother’s funeral put off over uncertainty on his arrival

The funeral of Lok Sabha MP Amritpal Singh’s grandmother will not be held on Saturday, as the family is yet to receive information from the administration about his arrival, his uncle Sukhchain Singh Gill said.

Speaking to the media, Gill said the family had not been informed about arrangements for Amritpal’s visit, despite the court permitting him to meet his family for three hours on Saturday. He said the family had spoken to the MP on Friday, but he had no information about the possibility of interim bail.

Gill said the family’s legal team would approach the court again on Saturday to present its case and seek permission for Amritpal to attend his grandmother’s last rites.

On Friday, the court allowed Amritpal, chief of Waris Punjab De and MP from Khadoor Sahib, to meet his family from 12 noon to 3 pm. His separate plea seeking 15-day parole remained pending.

Advocate Harjot Singh Mann said the legal team would approach the duty magistrate to seek an extension of the permitted period. The defence had sought at least two days to enable Amritpal to attend the funeral, participate in other last rites and spend time with his family.

Mann said Amritpal’s grandmother had wished him to perform her last rites and stressed the importance of his presence at the final religious prayers in accordance with Sikh traditions.

Amritpal is lodged in the Dibrugarh jail in Assam. The jail administration and authorities concerned would arrange his transportation to Punjab, Mann added. No official information had been shared on whether he would be brought by air or helicopter.

The family would bear the travel expenses specified by the authorities, the advocate added.