Jailed in Kashmir: Ministry contacts high commission in Delhi

Nisar says ministries will make arrangements to bring Rubina back

ISLAMABAD: On the directives of Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, the Ministry of Interior (MoI) on Monday contacted the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi to get information about a Pakistani woman, Rubina, and her minor child, imprisoned in Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK) for the last four years.

“The National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) should trace out facts about the woman from the address, which is available at the moment. The complete report in this context should be submitted to the MoI by tomorrow (Tuesday),” Nisar said in a statement issued on Monday. The interior minister took notice of the issue after it was reported by Indian media. He later ordered Director Immigration and Passports and NADRA chairman to urgently verify her identity.



Rubina, who reportedly belongs to Hyderabad-Sindh, went to India for treatment of asthma in 2012. She was accompanied by her husband and daughter. However, Rubina’s husband abandoned his family in New Delhi but took along her passport, money and visa.

In this situation, Rubina was left with no means to prove her identity and travel back home. Locals took pity on her and gave her some money to reach Wagah border, but due to lack of proper documentation she was not allowed to enter Pakistan.

Rubina then went to the Indian Occupied Kashmir to cross into Pakistan. However, she was arrested by Indian security forces on Nov 6, 2012 and sent to a jail in held Kashmir’s Kot Bhalwal area.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 3^rd, 2017.