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The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Friday adjourned the petition of jailed Lok Sabha MP and Pro-Khalistani leader, Amritpal Singh to allow him to attend the ongoing Parliament session as there is a possibility that his seat may be vacated due to his prolonged absence.
The Punjab and Haryana HC has asked the Union of India whether the committee to decide on these issues has been formed by Parliament or not yet. The matter has been adjourned till Tuesday (February 25). Amritpal Singh's advocate pleaded that only six days are left with the latter to attend Parliament or his seat will stand vacated and his membership will be disqualified. According to Article 101(4) of the Constitution, if a member of either House of Parliament is absent for more than 60 days without permission on the days the Parliament meets, then the House may declare their seats vacant. So far, Amritpal, the MP from Khardoor Sahib, has been absent for 46 days, leaving just 12 more days before his seat may be vacated. The Independent MP had filed a petition on January 23, too, seeking permission to attend the Parliament session and participate in the Republic Day celebrations on January 26. In his earlier petition, Amritpal Singh argued that his prolonged absence is preventing his 19 lakh voters from having their voice heard in Parliament. He claimed his detention was 'politically motivated' and intended to curb his rising popularity. Amritpal Singh, who won the 2024 Lok Sabha elections from Punjab's Khadoor Sahib parliamentary constituency as an independent candidate, is originally a resident of Jallu Kheda village in Amritsar and is currently lodged in jail in Assam's Dibrugarh district under the National Security Act (NSA). He used to live in Dubai prior to his return to Punjab in 2022, after the death of Punjabi Actor Deep Sidhu. After his return, he became the chief of Deep Sidhu's pro-Khalistani organization, Waris Punjab De. He was arrested from Moga's Rode village after he and his supporters on February 23, 2023, staged a protest at the Ajnala police station and clashed with police personnel in an attempt to free one of his aides, who was taken into custody for making inflammatory and pro-Khalistan statements. (ANI)
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