Assam prison turns into a fortress for Amritpal Singh’s 9 aides

Almost 3000 km from Amritsar, Punjab, in a ward in a 166-year old prison, are nine men who are unique in several aspects.

They are the only ones in jail under the National Security Act. They are the only Sikh prisoners in the jail. And they are not allowed to interact with the other prisoners.

The nine are accomplices, associates, and aides of pro-Khalistan separatist Amritpal Singh, who remains at large after a crackdown on his organisation, Waris Punjab De on March 18.

According to people familiar with the matter, the Punjab government initially thought of sending Singh’s aides to Delhi’s Tihar jail, but because the Delhi prison houses many Punjabi gangsters, even some separatists , the government decided to send them to Assam. In 2021, the Jammu and Kashmir administration did something similar by sending people arrested under the Public Safety Act to a jail in Agra. This ensured the arrested men were lodged in a prison from their home states, where there are chances of other inmates , sometimes even jail officials helping them.

Also Read: Assam CM 'thanks' Punjab counterpart for Amritpal crackdown, takes dig at Arvind Kejriwal

The Dibrugarh prison complex was built in 1857 to house Indians who participated in the First War of Indian Independence , but has since lodged many prisoners who worked against the very notion of India’s nationhood -- members of the banned ULFA in the mid-1980s, for instance; and now, the separatists from Punjab.

Prison officials said a security review may be carried out again and security increased, if fugitive Amritpal Singh, is brought to Dibrugarh. The 30-year-old chief of Waris Punjab De, continues to evade arrest and remains on the top of the Punjab police’s most wanted list.

Until a month ago, the Dibrugarh central jail was just one of six such central jails in Assam. With no prisoner of notoriety at a national level, its periphery of the jail was guarded by Assam Police, while the prison’s in-house guards managed the security inside.

Over the past one month, though, it has been converted to a maximum high security prison.

“We now have CRPF personnel guarding the jail round-the-clock. There are also commandos from the Assam Police. 57 CCTV cameras monitor the prisoners inside and the movement of visitors at the jail gates. Our teams fixed non-functional CCTV camera and set up high-mast lights when we were informed that the NSA-prisoners from Punjab would be brought here,” said a jail official who asked not to be named.

A second jail official said that unlike other jails, the Dibrugarh jail is not packed to its maximum capacity and jail officials are better equipped to manage the inmates here. The jail has a sanctioned capacity of 680 prisoners, tbut has fewer than 430 prisoners.

“This prison was the first concrete jail building in the northeastern part of the country. It was built by the British government in 1857 at the peak of India’s first war of Independence. The construction of the whole complex was completed by 1859,” the second official added.

The 9 men here, including Singh’s main aide, Papalpreet Singh, have not had any visitors (including family members ) since the day they were brought to Assam. While prisoners are allowed to meet their family members twice a week, those booked under the NSA have to take permission from the district magistrate to do so. Their request is also checked by officials in the Home Ministry. Officials said the 9 prisoners are however meeting with officials from the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee .

Shrabana Sonowal, the superintendent of Dibrugarh central jail, said, “These 9 prisoners are kept separate from other prisoners here. It is for their safety as well as the safety of other prisoners. The prison is equipped to lodge any prisoners. They are being treated fairly, as per the law. Their lawyers visit them regularly.”

Gyanendra Pratap Singh, director general of Assam Police, said the force has made adequate security arrangements for the safety of the prisoners as well as the prison. “Our officers are there to ensure fool proof arrangements. Local customs followed by the inmates have been respected during their detention. All lawful milestones and procedures are being respected,” Singh said.