Zardari frees Indian prisoner of 27 years
ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari on Sunday remitted the remaining jail term of Indian convict Gopal Das, who has been imprisoned in Pakistan for 27 years, days ahead of a visit to India by Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani to watch the cricket World Cup semi-final featuring the teams of the two countries.
Zardari remitted the remaining prison term of Das "on humanitarian grounds", presidential spokesman Farhatullah Babar said.
The remission was granted on the advice of the prime minister to "honour an appeal of the Supreme Court of India to the government of Pakistan", he said.
A two-judge bench of the Indian Supreme Court had appealed to the Pakistan government earlier this month to remit the remaining period of Das' sentence and release him on humanitarian grounds.
The court made the appeal in response to a petition filed by Das' brother Anand Vir.
Babar noted that Indian media reports had mentioned that the Indian judges had resorted to the "unusual step" of appealing to Pakistan to consider granting remission to Das on humanitarian grounds.
He also pointed out that Justice Markandey Katju had, in his judgement, quoted a couplet by Faiz: "Qafas uddas hai yaaro sabaa se kuch to kaho, Kaheen to beher-e-khuda aaj zikr-e-yaar chale".
Das' family has said that he was arrested by Pakistani security forces when he mistakenly crossed the border in July 1984.
According to official records, Das was sentenced to life imprisonment in June 1987 and was set to be released by the end of this year.
However, acting on the advice of the prime minister, the President on Sunday remitted Das' remaining term, Babar said.
"The President signed the remission advice in the wee hours of Sunday, soon after the invitation of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was accepted and it was decided that Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani will proceed to Mohali to witness the semi-final cricket match between the teams of the two countries," Babar said.
The Home and Interior Secretaries of India and Pakistan will meet in New Delhi tomorrow for the first in a series of meetings under the umbrella of the "full spectrum of dialogue" between the two countries.
Tomorrow's meeting will mark the formal resumption of the bilateral peace process that was stalled in the wake of the 2008 Mumbai attacks, which were blamed on the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba. - PTI
Monday, March 28, 2011
Zardari remitted the remaining prison term of Das "on humanitarian grounds", presidential spokesman Farhatullah Babar said.
The remission was granted on the advice of the prime minister to "honour an appeal of the Supreme Court of India to the government of Pakistan", he said.
A two-judge bench of the Indian Supreme Court had appealed to the Pakistan government earlier this month to remit the remaining period of Das' sentence and release him on humanitarian grounds.
The court made the appeal in response to a petition filed by Das' brother Anand Vir.
Babar noted that Indian media reports had mentioned that the Indian judges had resorted to the "unusual step" of appealing to Pakistan to consider granting remission to Das on humanitarian grounds.
He also pointed out that Justice Markandey Katju had, in his judgement, quoted a couplet by Faiz: "Qafas uddas hai yaaro sabaa se kuch to kaho, Kaheen to beher-e-khuda aaj zikr-e-yaar chale".
Das' family has said that he was arrested by Pakistani security forces when he mistakenly crossed the border in July 1984.
According to official records, Das was sentenced to life imprisonment in June 1987 and was set to be released by the end of this year.
However, acting on the advice of the prime minister, the President on Sunday remitted Das' remaining term, Babar said.
"The President signed the remission advice in the wee hours of Sunday, soon after the invitation of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was accepted and it was decided that Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani will proceed to Mohali to witness the semi-final cricket match between the teams of the two countries," Babar said.
The Home and Interior Secretaries of India and Pakistan will meet in New Delhi tomorrow for the first in a series of meetings under the umbrella of the "full spectrum of dialogue" between the two countries.
Tomorrow's meeting will mark the formal resumption of the bilateral peace process that was stalled in the wake of the 2008 Mumbai attacks, which were blamed on the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba. - PTI
Monday, March 28, 2011
Expat Indians and Pakistanis join hands for flood relief
Floods across the border
As massive floods rage across Pakistan, affecting over 14 million people and leaving over 1,600 dead so far, Pakistanis and Indians liv .....more
Floods across the borderAs massive floods rage across Pakistan, affecting over 14 million people and leaving over 1,600 dead so far, Pakistanis and Indians liv .....more
Water Boiling Over Across LoC
Terrorism is the main discordant note in India-Pakistan ties and is at the heart of the trust deficit. But threatening to spill over is another issue: water. As part o
.....more
Terrorism is the main discordant note in India-Pakistan ties and is at the heart of the trust deficit. But threatening to spill over is another issue: water. As part o
.....more
Focus on the economics: a new approach is all that is needed
By Aziz Memon
As they say better late than never. I think it is about time that the leadership of Pakistan and India should change the basis of the dialogu .....more
By Aziz Memon As they say better late than never. I think it is about time that the leadership of Pakistan and India should change the basis of the dialogu .....more
Walk on... for peace
Laleh Habib is inspired by 'Amn ke Badhte Qadam', a people-to-people peace initiative between Pakistan and India
Even as official diplomatic relations be .....more
Laleh Habib is inspired by 'Amn ke Badhte Qadam', a people-to-people peace initiative between Pakistan and India Even as official diplomatic relations be .....more
A potential for cooperation
There were those who suggested that the Aman ki Asha seminar on water issues should be postphoned, in the wake of the disppointing Foreign Ministers' meeting in Islamabad
.....more
There were those who suggested that the Aman ki Asha seminar on water issues should be postphoned, in the wake of the disppointing Foreign Ministers' meeting in Islamabad
.....more
Wanted: Info sharing, joint monitoring on water
India-Pakistan ties continue to be marred by areas of discordance, most notably 'terrorism' lies at the core of trust deficit. Flowing underneath but threatening to spill
.....more
India-Pakistan ties continue to be marred by areas of discordance, most notably 'terrorism' lies at the core of trust deficit. Flowing underneath but threatening to spill
.....more Page 141 of 177
Special Editions
more editions
The News on Sunday Special Report: India Pakistan prisoners
We probably didn't need to do this Special Report. Newspaper stories don't matter when it comes to Indians in Pakistani jails and vice versa. In fact, 'vice versa' sums it up. We do to them what they do to us.
Except when the two countries decide to begin talking, yet again! This time a little before the foreign secretary level talks, some Pakistani prisoners were released by India (and vice versa must have happened) and some more were release....read more
Blog
more
For the past 2 years the Jang Group and Geo have been working on a project of great national interest; one that we hope will help usher in an era of peace and prosperity in the country and indeed, in the region. And one that hopefully all Pakistanis can be proud of.
The Jang Group has entered into an agreement with the Times of India Group, the largest media group of India, to campaign for peace betw
Global Media
Comments