Pakistan releases 20 Indian fishermen as goodwill gesture

The fishermen will be handed over to Border Security Force at Wagah on Monday

LAHORE:

Pakistan has released 20 Indian fishermen who will be handed over to India's Border Security Force (BSF) at the Wagah border in Lahore on Monday.

The fishermen were arrested for illegally entering Pakistani waters and fishing without permission. They were in Karachi's Landhi Jail but were released a day earlier by the government on a humanitarian basis.

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According to officials, there are 588 Indian fishermen in Pakistani jails out of which cases of 42 are pending while sentences have been handed down. They said that there are 620 Pakistani fishermen in Indian jails.

The Edhi Foundation is bearing the travel expenses of the fishermen. A spokesperson for the charity organisation said that each fisherman has also been given Rs5,000 as a goodwill gesture by Bilquis Edhi.