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India repatriates 12 Pakistani prisoners via Wagah
India-Pakistan relations are currently at an all-time low and regular diplomatic and consular interactions have virtually ground to a halt.
India on Thursday repatriated 12 Pakistani nationals who had completed their prison sentences via the Attari-Wagah land border crossing.
The Pakistan high commission said the group included six fishermen. It added that one of the released Pakistani nationals was a man aged more than 80 years named Muhammad Nazir.
“Pakistan high commission will continue its efforts for early repatriation of all those Pakistani prisoners who have completed their sentences in India,” the mission said in a tweet.
The external affairs ministry said all the Pakistani nationals were sent back on completion of their prison terms.
The Indian government “attaches the highest importance to addressing all humanitarian matters, including the early release and repatriation of Indian prisoners and fishermen”, the ministry said in a statement.
“Government’s persistent efforts have succeeded in the release and repatriation of 20 Indian fishermen from Pakistan’s custody in 2022 so far,” the statement added.
India-Pakistan relations are currently at an all-time low and regular diplomatic and consular interactions have virtually ground to a halt. This has also affected the work started by the two sides, following the signing of an agreement in 2008, to speed up the identification and release of prisoners, especially fishermen, held in each other’s jails.
Both countries arrest dozens of fishermen each year on charges of violating the maritime boundary. They also exchange lists of prisoners in each other’s custody in January and July every year in keeping with the 2008 agreement.
During the exchange this January, the Indian side requested Pakistan to expedite the grant of visas to members of a medical experts’ team and to facilitate their visit to assess the mental condition of believed-to-be Indian prisoners of unsound mind held in different Pakistani jails. India also proposed an early visit to Pakistan by the joint judicial committee formed under the terms of the 2008 agreement.
