A video message reportedly recorded inside prison by jailed Sikh political prisoner Jagtar Singh Hawara has surfaced on social media, appealing for peace ahead of a planned protest march in Punjab. Hawara is in jail and is a convict in former Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh's assassination. 

The two-minute video, released late Thursday by representatives of the Qaumi Insaaf Morcha, shows Hawara calling on demonstrators to ensure that an upcoming protest march ahead of August 15 remains peaceful and disciplined.

Hawara urged both participants and community leaders to exercise responsibility to avoid any untoward incidents during the rally. The video was reportedly filmed in the Delhi prison where Hawara is currently incarcerated. 

The march is being organized by various Sikh outfits under the umbrella of the Qaumi Insaaf Morcha to press their ongoing demand for the release of "Bandi Singhs"—Sikh political prisoners who have served extended jail terms.

Quami Insaaf Morcha is holding a protest in Mohali on Chandigarh-Mohali border for the past over four years. The morcha is demanding that all the Sikh prisoners who have completed their jail terms should be released from the jails.