Sikh separatist leader arrested by Indian police after weeks on the run

Sikh separatist leader Amritpal Singh, who has revived calls for secession of India’s northern Punjab state bordering a hostile Pakistan, has been arrested by Indian police after going on the run last month (Prabhjot Gill/AP)

Indian police have arrested a separatist leader who has revived calls for an independent Sikh homeland and the secession of India’s northern Punjab state, which has a history of violent insurgency.

Amritpal Singh had been on the run since last month after capturing national attention in February, when hundreds of his supporters stormed a police station in Ajnala, a town in Punjab state, with wooden batons, swords and guns to demand the release of a jailed aide.