Supreme Court seeks Intelligence Bureau inputs on a convict's plea to be moved from Tihar Jail to Punjab
13 October 2026
On 13 October 2026 the Supreme Court sought the Intelligence Bureau's assessment of the security and law-and-order risks of transferring a convict from Tihar Jail in Delhi to a high-security prison in Punjab.
The case is Jagtar Singh Hawara v. Government of NCT of Delhi and Ors., W.P.(Crl.) No. 403/2024, Diary No. 36064/2024, before Justice MM Sundresh and Justice PB Varale.
Hawara is a convict in the 1995 assassination of former Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh.
His counsel said the plea is only for a transfer, so that he can meet his elderly and seriously ill mother, and is not a request for release.
The Delhi and Punjab governments opposed the transfer, citing security concerns and a Ministry of Home Affairs advisory on moving high-risk prisoners between States.
The Court said it would decide the plea after receiving the Intelligence Bureau's inputs, and passed no final order.
In plain words
IB Intelligence Bureau — India's internal intelligence agency, under the Ministry of Home Affairs.
Writ petition (criminal) — A petition in a constitutional court seeking relief in a matter arising from criminal law or custody.