BSF constable remains in Pakistan custody
A BSF official, privy to the situation, said, “Since Wednesday afternoon, we have been looking for a positive move from Pakistan, but nothing has happened.”
Border Security Force (BSF) constable, Purnab Kumar Shaw, who had inadvertently crossed the international border on April 23, remained in Pakistan’s custody for the fifth consecutive day with the neighbouring country not responding to India’s repeated requests for his release.
A BSF official, privy to the situation, said, “Since Wednesday afternoon, we have been looking for a positive move from Pakistan, but nothing has happened.”
Meanwhile, the wife of BSF jawan on Sunday said she would visit Ferozepur in Punjab to gather information from senior officials of the force about efforts to bring back her husband.
The pregnant woman, her son and three other relatives would take a flight to Chandigarh on Monday and thereafter reach Ferozepur. Shaw hails from Hooghly district in West Bengal.
“I have been under severe stress since hearing the news. Today is the fifth day and there is no update on his return,” Shaw’s wife Rajani said.
“I have got tomorrow’s flight ticket for Chandigarh. From there I will go to Ferozepur. My son and three other relatives will accompany me,” she said.
To date, three flag meetings between BSF and Pakistan Rangers have ended without a breakthrough. The last meeting was held on Friday.
“Our teams assembled at the designated point with the flag raised as per established protocol. Initially, there was no response from Pakistan Rangers. Later in the afternoon, they came and questioned why the meeting was requested, despite the situation being self-evident,” said the official involved in the negotiations.
“They informed us that they were still awaiting orders from their superiors. Once again, the discussions remained inconclusive,” he added.
According to BSF officials, the incident occurred when the jawan, escorting a group of farmers near the border, stepped away to rest under a tree, unknowingly slipping into Pakistani territory. He was posted with the 182nd battalion of the BSF at the Ferozepur border.
“The fencing exists only on the Indian side, while the actual international boundary is marked by a small pillar, often hard to identify for new personnel,” a BSF officer, pleading anonymity, explained.
The incident came to public light on April 24 amid heightened security along the Indo-Pakistan border post the terror attack in Pahalgam that claimed the lives of 26 tourists. With inputs from PTI