The Lok Sabha nomination of Amritpal Singh, the jailed Sikh separatist and chief of pro-Khalistan group Waris Punjab De, has been accepted by the Election Commission, ANI reported.

Singh, who is in Assam’s Dibrugarh jail, filed his nomination as an independent candidate from Punjab’s Khadoor Sahib parliamentary seat on Friday. Polling will be held in the state on June 1.

On April 23, 2023, the Punjab Police arrested the self-styled Sikh preacher from Moga after he had been on the run for over a month. The 29-year-old was flown to Assam on a special flight and sent to the Dibrugarh Central Jail.

The Punjab Police began cracking down on members of Waris Punjab De, or heirs of Punjab, days after Singh and his supporters stormed a police station in Amritsar on February 23, 2023. This came after one of Singh’s aides was arrested for alleged assault and attempted kidnapping.

Earlier this year, Singh filed a petition before the Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking temporary release to file his nomination papers. The Punjab government told the court that it had made arrangements for Singh to file his nomination papers, reported the Business Standard.

Singh had garnered a significant following with his speeches centred around Punjab’s youth and the Sikh religion. He had also publicly supported the demand for Khalistan, an independent state for Sikhs.