M A I N   N E W S

Pak’s no to 14 of 28 nationals
From Varinder Walia
Tribune News Service

WAGAH (Indo-Pak border), Sept 7 — The Pakistan Government today refused to accept 14 out of a total of 28 nationals who were to be deported by India through the Wagah joint checkpost here today. As a result, only 14 Pakistani nationals could be deported by noon

The Pakistani Rangers, led by Lt-Col Changez Khan, showered rose petals when the 14 persons who were released from troubled Jammu and Kashmir jails crossed to Pakistan. Most of the deported persons belonged to the Gujjranwala, Shakkargarh and Sialkot areas of Pakistan.

Those deported include Mohammad Buta (Sialkot), Walait Khan (Gujjranwala), Mohammad Ramzan (Chakrala), Shahid Hussain (Narowal), Peter Massih (Sialkot), Mohammad Ilias (Jaimal Chakk), Nazum Rehman, Ashif Sabud (Shakkargarh), Kala (Shakkargarh), Mohammad Yakub (Lahore), Mohammad Yashu (Gujjranwala), Hamid (Peshawar), Afsad Ali (Shakkargarh) and Mohammad Suleman (Jhang).

The Pakistani nationals who could not be deported as the Pakistan Government failed to do their identification on time include Mohammad Nawaz (Jalalpur), Raju (Rehimyar Khan), Mohammad Yusaf (Karachi) Nawaz Ali (Sargauda), Mohammad Rafi (Pakistan occupied Kashmir), Abdul Alim (West Karachi), Iftiqar Ahmed (Sialkot), Mohammad Azir (Sialkot), Iqbal Ahmed (Sialkot), Kesar Hamin (Gujjranwala), Aju (Sialkot), Mohammad Monisah (Gujjranwal) Mohammad Brather (Kohistan) and another deaf and dumb person.

While most of the Pakistani nationals deported from Wagah joint checkpost claimed that they had crossed the border by mistake, yet it is believed that some of them had come to India at the behest of intelligence agencies. One Shahid Hussain (24), a resident of Narowal, said that he had crossed the border with a view to propagate Islam. He said he was sent to India at the will of Allah (almighty). Replying to a question, he said if God wished he would again cross over to India with the help of Pakistani agencies.

Kala Gujjar, a Punjabi from Shakkargarh (Pakistan), said that he had crossed over to India through the Jammu and Kashmir border to meet his aunt in 1993, when the BSF nabbed him. He said he was treated well in Indian jails. He said his wife was expecting then and gave birth to a male child when he was in an Indian jail. “I don’t know the name of my son even who must be seven years old now”, he said. Kala Gujjar said he was extremely happy that he would meet his family after a long time. However, Suleman (50), resident of Chakka Shikarwala, narrated the reasons for crossing the border. He said he was a bachelor and his “chacha” used to scold him all the time. His sorrow knew no bouds when a correspondent asked him that what he would do if his ‘chacha’ cursed him again.

Mohammad Yusaf (28) looked disturbed and was unable to give the reasons for crossing to the Indian side.

Mohammad Yakub (60) who had retired from Pakistan Railways, Lahore, said that he was caught by the BSF due to his overstay in India. He claimed that he had come to India in 1990 on a valid visa. However, he could not get it extended due to unavoidable reasons. He has four children, out of them two are abroad. He said he was in constant touch with his family throughout his imprisonment. My children would regularly send me money from abroad.

UNI adds: Fate intervened for the second time on Thursday to thwart the repatriation of an Indian prisoner, held for the past 19 months at Kot Lakhpat jail near Lahore, to his motherland through this joint check post (jcp) because of confusion over his identity.

Though repatriation of 14 Pakistani nationals, brought from the Jammu Central Jail, through the checkpost passed off without a hitch, their 13 compatriots were not as fortunate as the Pakistan Rangers refused to accept them due to non-verification of their identities.

Regarding the case of Indian prisoner Malkiat Chand, BSF officers supervising the exchange of prisoners told newspersons that confusion arose when the Rangers pointed out that they did not have a person with such a name in their custody.

The Rangers had instead cleared the name of Biloo Singh for repatriation. But the BSF refused to accept a person with such a name as verification papers received from Punjab police authorities were in the name of Malkiat Chand.

Though the BSF authorities were informed by Mr Sukhdev Singh, sarpanch of Malkiat’s native Ahmedabad village near Dhariwal in Gurdaspur district, that Biloo Singh and Malkiat Chand were one and the same person, the authorities said his repatriation would not be possible due to the confusion.

Both the sarpanch and the prisoner’s elder brother Tirlok Chand were asked to wait till evening as efforts were afoot to get him released.