Dibrugarh Central Jail

Dibrugarh Central Jail is in Dibrugarh, in the state of Assam in India's north-east, a long way from Punjab. It entered Sikh history in March 2023, when Punjab Police began a crackdown on Waris Punjab De and its head Amritpal Singh and sent detainees there under the National Security Act (NSA).

Key moments

• 19 to 21 March 2023: The Wire reported that four of Amritpal Singh's associates were flown to Dibrugarh by a special military aircraft on 19 March, one more on 20 March and two others on 21 March, with more than 115 people linked to the group arrested by then. Al Jazeera reported that mobile internet and SMS services were suspended across Punjab.
• April 2023: Amritpal Singh himself was lodged in Dibrugarh Central Jail, where he stayed for three years under the NSA, according to The Tribune and NorthEast Now.
• 16 February 2024: Amritpal Singh and nine associates began a hunger strike, reported The Tribune, saying that surveillance cameras had been put in their barracks and bathrooms without their knowledge. The World Sikh Organization of Canada said on 19 February that the ten had been held for nearly a year without charges, that the jail accused Amritpal Singh of having two phones, a USB stick and a smartwatch, and that he said the items were planted. These are the WSO's claims; the Tribune report carried no statement from Assam jail officials. On 22 February his mother and relatives of other detainees began a hunger strike at the Golden Temple complex, asking for the men to be moved to a Punjab jail.
• 2024: Amritpal Singh won the Khadoor Sahib seat as an independent in the general election, and was granted parole in July 2024 to take his oath as a Member of Parliament (NorthEast Now).
• April 2026: with the NSA term about to end, Punjab told the High Court it wanted to arrest him in a pending case and keep him in Dibrugarh. The state's counsel said: "We don't want him in Punjab. We want to arrest him and keep him there." The state argued that a Punjab jail would prejudice public order and State security, and Assam gave its no objection (The Tribune, 16 April 2026). His NSA detention ended at midnight on 22 April, and on 23 April Punjab Police arrested him inside the jail in the Ajnala police station attack case. He was given two days' police remand, and his lawyer said trial proceedings would be held by video conference (NorthEast Now).

Why it matters. Keeping detainees in Assam, far from their families in Punjab, has been a point of protest. The state says the reason is public order. His mother and the relatives of other detainees have asked for the men to be moved to a Punjab jail, and the World Sikh Organization of Canada has called for their release.