Amitoj was born on June 3, 1947, to Charan Das and Janki Devi in the village of Muridke, Gurdaspur district.
Amitoj earned his MA and PhD degrees from Punjab University, Chandigarh. In the 1980s, he gained recognition for his distinctive literary style on the Doordarshan Jalandhar program Kachhian Mundran. He contributed extensively as a teacher, director, scriptwriter, and presenter on both Doordarshan and All India Radio.
Throughout his life, Amitoj authored only one published poetry collection, Khali Tarkash, which saw the light of day thanks to the efforts of Surjit Patar. Many of his other works remain unpublished to this day. The poem "Roshanara," written by Amitoj during Bangladesh's Liberation War, served as a tribute to a Dhaka University student who was tragically crushed to death by a Pakistani tank. Later, the United News of India (UNI) disseminated the poem nationwide, where it received widespread acclaim.
Amitoj's poetry was enchanting in its dramatic flair, rooted in folk traditions, conversational tone, masterful wordplay, vivid imagination, and skillful narrative delivery. Notable among his beautiful poems are "Letters in the Name of Lahore," "Budha Bould," "Khali Tarkash," and "Greeting Card." The Punjabi adaptation of Bertolt Brecht's play The Caucasian Chalk Circle, titled Parai Kukh, also achieved fame largely due to Amitoj's evocative songs.
On August 28, 2005, Amitoj bid farewell to this world.