Pakistan

Geeta identifies her family in Bihar: Edhi spokesperson

Spokesperson says Geeta identified her family through a photograph sent to Faisal Edhi by the Indian High Commission

Rabia Ali October 15, 2015

A file photo of deaf-mute Indian girl Geeta. PHOTO: REUTERS

KARACHI: Geeta, a deaf and mute Indian girl who has been stranded in Pakistan for 13 years, identified on Thursday her family belonging to Bihar.

"Geeta successfully identified her sister and four brothers through a photograph sent to Faisal Edhi by the Indian High Commission in Islamabad," Edhi spokesperson Anwar Kazmi told The Express Tribune.

"We will try and connect her to her family through NDTV and send her home soon," the spokesperson added.

Read: Pakistan fully cooperating with Indian High Commission for Geeta’s return: FO

The family belongs to Bihar, Kazmi further said.

Meanwhile, Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj confirmed Geeta's family has been located. "Geeta will be back in India soon. We have located her family. She will be handed over to them only after the DNA test," Swaraj said on Twitter.

Geeta will be back in India soon. We have located her family. She will be handed over to them only after the DNA test.#Geeta
— Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) October 15, 2015

Earlier, Pakistan said it was fully cooperating with the Indian High Commission for return of Geeta, who is deaf and mute.

“No condition has been set for Geeta to report to the Foreign Ministry for obtaining permission to travel back to India,” the Foreign Office said in a statement.

Read: Court seeks govt’s reply on Geeta’s custody

“The Foreign Office is in contact with the Indian High Commission in this regard; however, it is responsibility of the Indian side to prepare Geeta’s travel documents, the statement added,” the statement added.

COMMENTS (3)

Salman - SK | 9 years ago | Reply While this is a good news, I hope the Indian government will investigate the issue further, even after Geeta's return to India, to determine how she ended up close to the border and crossed over to Pakistan. Being so far from Bihar, it does not seem like an inadvertent mistake. It appears to be a case of human trafficking whereby this innocent girl was kidnapped for evil purposes. Only her good fate led her in the hands of angels who kept her with love and dignity. Chances were more that she could have ended up in the hands of beasts. Let us pray to have more Burneys and more Edhis in this world. Equally important is that if she wishes to travel back to Pakistan to visit people she has spent so many years with, the Pakistani government does not make it difficult for her to get a visa, as both Indian and Pakistani governments are notorious to make it difficult for each other's citizens to travel to their respective countries.

Debilitator | 9 years ago | Reply Great news! Our generosities are not merely restricted to movies (reference Bhajrangi Bhaijan). We actually believe in serving and helping the humanity.

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