WASHINGTON, D.C. — A U.S. federal court has ordered immigration authorities to provide a bond hearing to an Indian national held in detention in Pennsylvania, ruling that he is entitled to judicial review of his custody because he was arrested inside the United States and is not a new border arrival.
In a memorandum opinion issued January 9, U.S. Magistrate Judge Christopher B. Brown of the Western District of Pennsylvania granted a habeas corpus petition filed by Lovedeep Singh, a 26-year-old Indian citizen detained at the Moshannon Valley Processing Center while his immigration appeal remains pending.
“The Court finds that, because Singh’s detention is governed by § 1226(a) rather than § 1225(b)(2), the Government must afford him a bond hearing,” Judge Brown wrote, ordering authorities to provide a hearing before a neutral immigration judge by January 16, 2026.
At issue was which section of U.S. immigration law governs Singh’s detention. Section 1225(b)(2) applies to individuals arriving at the U.S. border and seeking entry. Under that provision, people deemed ineligible to enter are subject to mandatory detention during removal proceedings and are not entitled to a bond hearing. Section 1226(a), by contrast, applies to individuals already present in the United States and allows for discretionary detention or release, with the right to seek a bond hearing before an immigration judge.
The government argued that Singh was subject to mandatory detention under the provision covering applicants for admission and therefore not entitled to a bond hearing. Singh countered that the law applies only to people arriving at a port of entry and that, because he had lived in the United States for years, his detention should be subject to judicial review.
The court agreed with Singh. Judge Brown said the mandatory detention statute applies to people “seeking admission” at the border, not to noncitizens already living inside the United States. Singh, the court noted, had been physically present in the country for more than six years and was not attempting to enter the U.S. when he was taken into custody.
Court records show that Singh entered the United States in April 2019 at the southwest border and was later released on a $24,000 bond. He applied for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture. An immigration judge denied those applications in July 2022 and ordered him removed to India. Singh appealed the decision to the Board of Immigration Appeals, which automatically stayed his removal while the appeal is pending.
Singh was re-detained in July 2025 after visiting an FBI office to seek protection for his girlfriend, who he said was receiving threatening messages. Federal officials contacted immigration authorities, who interviewed Singh, cancelled his bond, and placed him back into custody pending the outcome of his appeal.
The government relied in part on a 2025 policy change that treats certain noncitizens already living in the United States as “applicants for admission,” an interpretation later adopted by the Board of Immigration Appeals. Judge Brown rejected that reasoning, saying the plain language of the statute does not support treating long-term U.S. residents as new arrivals.
The court also cited Supreme Court precedent drawing a clear legal distinction between individuals at the border and those already inside the country, noting that immigration law contains a separate framework for people present in the United States under which detention is discretionary and subject to review by an immigration judge.
While granting Singh the right to a bond hearing, the court declined to order his immediate release and refused to bar the government from transferring him to another detention facility, ruling that a bond hearing was the appropriate remedy under the law. (Source: IANS)
