Pakistani man imprisoned for 23 years in India returns home

Pakistani High Commission in New Delhi played a crucial role in Bukhari’s release

LAHORE: The Indian government on Tuesday handed a Pakistani citizen imprisoned in India for 23 years.

Opting for "backdoor diplomacy", the repatriation was performed as a goodwill gesture to the government. The man, Syed Sajid Ali Bukhari, belongs to Kotli, Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and mistakenly crossed the border entering Indian Occupied Kashmir (IoK).



On September 8, 1995, the Indian forces apprehended him in IoK and imprisoned him. Bukhari stayed in Srinagar jail for many years, his case, under RPC section 302, 307 and section 3, 5, was registered at Prempura police station.

Bukhari’s citizenship was confirmed in July 2006 after which the process of repatriation was initiated. He was handed over to Pakistan's Punjab Rangers by the Indian Border Security Force (BSF).

Pakistani High Commission in New Delhi also played a crucial role in Bukhari’s release. Numerous Pakistani and Indian citizens due to non-verification of citizenship are forced to spend their days behind bars in both the countries.

PHOTO: EXPRESS

Last week, a 22-year-old patient of sickle cell anemia, who had traversed into Pakistan’s territory unintentionally five years ago, was handed back to India as a goodwill gesture.

Jitendra Arjunwar, a resident of Indian state Madhya Pradesh, had entered Pakistan from the Rajasthan border on August 12, 2013 following an argument with his family.



He was kept in Hyderabad jail after being sentenced to a one-year imprisonment by the court and shifted to Karachi on completing his jail term in 2014. Despite repeated correspondence with the Indian embassy, the Pakistani authorities could not ascertain Jitendra’s status as an Indian citizen.