CHANDIGARH, JAN 4 — More than a year after he was accidentally swept into Pakistan, a Punjab farmer remains incarcerated there despite having completed the jail term imposed by a Pakistani court, according to his family.
Harpreet Singh, 38, from Hasteke village in Ferozepur district, was taken into custody by Pakistan Rangers in August 2024 after being carried across the border by the Sutlej river while working near farmland close to Machhiwara.
A Pakistani court later convicted Harpreet under the Pakistan Control of Entry Act, 1952, sentencing him to one month in prison and imposing a fine, family members said. The sentence has long since been served, but his detention continues.
“This was an accident, not an illegal act,” said his father, Joginder Singh. “My son crossed the border because of the river’s current. Even after completing the punishment, he is still in jail.”
According to the family, an FIR was registered against Harpreet on Nov. 1, 2024, at Ganda Singh Wala police station. On Nov. 6, a judicial magistrate in Kasur sentenced him to one month of imprisonment and a fine of Rs 3,000, which was paid by his parents through legal counsel.
Joginder Singh said Harpreet had gone to collect fodder from leased farmland near the river, about three kilometers from the international border.
“He used to help me with farming,” he said. “We own land in Hasteke village and lease more near Machhiwara. That day changed our lives.”
The delay in Harpreet’s release has left the family in distress, said his mother, Harjeet Kaur.
“We have done everything we could,” she said. “Each passing day is painful, knowing he should already be home.”
Harpreet’s wife, Mandeep Kaur, said the couple’s two children — a teenage son and a young daughter — continue to ask when their father will return.
“He has already paid the price for something that was never intentional,” she said. “We only want justice and his safe return.”
The family said they have appealed to the Central government to intervene diplomatically and ensure Harpreet Singh’s release at the earliest.
