By IANS
Amritsar/New Delhi : Pakistani authorities Monday released 135 Indians, most of them fishermen from Gujarat, while India will reciprocate by releasing 72 Pakistani prisoners Tuesday – as both countries gear up to celebrate their respective independence days.
The Pakistani authorities released the Indians at the Wagah joint border check post, 30 km from Amritsar.
After completion of cumbersome formalities on both sides of the border, all the Indians who crossed over heaved a sigh of relief at being back in the country.
In New Delhi, external affairs ministry spokesman Navtej Sarna said India would release 72 Pakistani nationals, including 48 fishermen and 24 prisoners, on Tuesday in accordance with a decision taken at the meeting of home secretaries of both countries in New Delhi last month.
“We have noted that the government of Pakistan has announced the release of 100 Indian fishermen and 35 prisoners on August 13. We had hoped that in accordance with the decisions announced during the home secretary level talks, all fishermen in custody in Pakistan as also the boats would have been released,” Sarna added.
“We will continue with our efforts with the government of Pakistan to ensure the early repatriation of all Indian national in custody in Pakistan. We also look forward to the release of 327 Indian boats detained by Pakistan,” he maintained.
Responding to a question on the number of fishermen and other Indian prisoners now left in Pakistan, Sarna said: “After this release, 296 Indian fishermen and 327 boats are in Pakistani custody. A total of 156 Indian prisoners are stated to be in Pakistani custody of which the nationality status of 47 has been confirmed.
“So after the release of 35 prisoners as announced by Pakistan, a total of 121 prisoners are remaining in Pakistani custody. So that is 296 fishermen and 121 prisoners,” the spokesman added.
Asked how many Pakistani prisoners are left in India, Sarna said: “In India, after the release of 24 prisoners has been announced, 155 confirmed Pakistani prisoners remain…and are serving their sentences.
“After the release of 48 fishermen by India, all those whose consular access has been completed and national status confirmed have been repatriated to Pakistan. Only eight Pakistani fishermen (who were arrested on July 17) remain and they will be produced for consular access shortly,” the spokesman added.
Speaking at Wagah on his release, Tarsem Singh of Punjab’s Gurdaspur district said: “This is a real homecoming for me. I am thankful to the almighty that I have been released. But there are several other Indians still languishing in Pakistani jails.”
He shouted the Sikh war cry “Bole so nihal, Sat Sri Akal” on entering India.
Those released Monday included nearly 100 fishermen from Gujarat and some people from Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir and Rajasthan. They were caught after having inadvertently crossed into Pakistan along the international border.
Most of them spent a few months to five years in Pakistani jails. The fishermen were brought to Wagah from Karachi jail where they were lodged after being caught fishing in Pakistan’s waters.
“Life was hell for us in Pakistan. At one time we thought that we would never return home. God has been kind to us,” said Santokh Singh of Ajnala town near the India-Pakistan border.