Wagah, June 6
The brutally injured Indian staffer, Mr Kulwant Singh, who was expelled by Islamabad returned to India today along with his terrified wife, Ms Kamla, and two sons after undergoing torture at the hands of ISI operatives during his five-hour captivity on June1.

While the expelled staffer narrated startling facts about his kidnapping by seven unidentified ISI men, his wife said Pakistan was not a country worth living in and minorities, especially Indian staffers, remained under constant threat. The ISI followed them like a shadow, she said.

Mr Kulwant Singh who was brought on a stretcher in a Pakistani ambulance to India at 11.20 a.m. was unable to speak properly due to the torture. The Pakistani orthopaedician, Dr Qureshi, and members of the Indian Consulate in Pakistan also accompanied him. He said he was kidnapped while he was going from the consulate to his house on a motor cycle with his son Rahul (10) in the afternoon of June 1.

Ordering his expulsion on alleged spying charges, Pakistan had declared him persona non grata for his involvement in activities “not-compatible with his official status”. Pakistan had said Mr Kulwant Singh was intercepted by the security authorities while receiving sensitive documents from a Pakistani contact.

While Dr Qureshi refused to give details of the multiple injuries sustained by Mr Kulwant Singh Indian doctors, Dr Rajinder Arora and Dr Rajiv Dev, after conducting a check-up at the immigration office here said his condition was serious and that he was tortured with a blunt weapon due to which he had suffered backbone fractures and could not stand up. They said he needed a thorough check-up and medical attention after an MRI and CT scan.

Giving details of his captivity, Mr Kulwant Singh and another Indian staffer, Mr J.N. Rai, said he was taken to a jungle after his face was covered with a mask. He was taken to a torture cell where he was asked about the sensitive documents he had no knowledge of. In a choked voice, Mr Kulwant Singh said he and his family members had never expected such inhuman treatment in Pakistan.

Visibly shaken, Rahul, who was an eyewitness to the kidnapping said he would never visit Pakistan again.

“Seven persons kidnapped me and drove me to some unknown destination. I was first handcuffed and thereafter beaten up brutally. During my captivity, they used filthy language and inflicted as much torture on me which they could before they finally handed me over at a police station nearby,” the staffer said.

He said he was forced to sign a confessional statement that stated he was apprehended for spying. He said he was hit with an iron rod on the back and after that he could not stand on his feet.