Ludhiana jail inmates clash with each other; Punjab minister Laljit Bhullar seeks report as officers sustain injuries

He said the violence was triggered by a clash between two inmates during the daytime, following which one of them was sent to the punishment ward by the assistant jail superintendent. “In the evening, when he was brought back to his original ward, he instigated the other 20-25 inmates of the ward. Within no time, they started attacking the jail staff with bricks lying in the jail garden, in which five staff members were injured. However, I want to make it clear that no one will be allowed to take the law into their own hands, whether outside or inside the jail. There is no angle of gangster groups involved; it was simply a fight between two inmates that took an ugly turn,” Sharma explained.

He said Surinderjit Singh Mand, DIG Prisons, is investigating the incident.

Sources said one inmate alleged that he was being targeted because of his religion, which quickly led to the formation of rival groups, intensifying the violence.

Kulwant Singh Sidhu, Superintendent, Ludhiana Jail, reportedly sustained a head injury after being hit by a brick. Inspector Gagandeep Singh, a deputy superintendent of police (DSP), and a few other jail officers were also injured in the melee. The injured officers were rushed to a private hospital rather than taken to the Ludhiana Civil Hospital for a medico-legal examination.

Additional security staff have been deployed inside the premises after the clash was reported.

Previous violent incidents in jails

The latest incident is not an isolated one. Clashes and violence inside Punjab’s jails have been reported repeatedly over the years, often exposing serious security lapses. In September, former Punjab Police inspector Suba Singh, in his early 80s, while serving a life sentence in a 1993 fake encounter case, died after being assaulted by another inmate inside Patiala Central Jail. Suba Singh was allegedly attacked by inmate Sandeep Singh alias Sunny in a barrack and sustained severe head and facial injuries. He was admitted to Government Rajindra Hospital, Patiala, where he later succumbed to injuries.

Sandeep Singh is already facing a trial in the murder of Shiv Sena leader Sudhir Suri, which happened in Amritsar. The case was converted into murder, and investigations were ordered to probe security failures inside the high-security jail.

In April 2024, a violent clash among inmates at Sangrur jail claimed the lives of two prisoners and left two others injured after a late-night fight inside the barracks. The injured were shifted to Patiala for advanced treatment, and an inquiry was launched to determine how the situation escalated so drastically.

One of the most serious incidents occurred in June 2019 at Ludhiana Central Jail following the death of inmate Sunny Sood, who was undergoing treatment at a hospital in Patiala. The news sparked widespread unrest among inmates, many allegedly linked to rival gangs. Hundreds of prisoners refused to return to their barracks, vandalised jail property, set fire to the record room and a jail superintendent’s vehicle, and attempted to breach the jail gates. The police resorted to firing inside the jail to bring the situation under control. One inmate, Ajit Baba, was killed, dozens were injured, and four prisoners attempted to escape before being recaptured. A magisterial inquiry was later ordered into the incident.