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Pakistan national to return home after 20 years in Amritsar jail | Mukhtar Ahmed, who has spent last 20 years in Indian jails, is all set to return to his native place in Pakistan. Affectinonately called "Bapu Mukhtiar", the 63-year-old Pakistani national was arrested in 1990 by the Indian security personnel on espionage charges.
Although sentenced for seven years of jailterm, Mukhtiar had to spend another
13 years in the jail. For, the Pakistani authorities refused to accept him as
they did not confirm his identity as a Pakistani national. When his name figured
in the list of Pak National Internees, who would be released during Ramadan month,
but kept in transit camp at Amritsar Central Jail, there was a shimmer of joy
and a major sigh of relief in his eyes. Mukhtiar has been living in the Central
Jail's transit camp despite his jail term completing in 2002. Father of two sons
and a daughter, Mukhtiar was sent to India by the Pakistani intelligence service
agency for spying in 1990. He was caught by the Indian police at Ferozepur in
Punjab . Mukhtiar claimed, he was a landlord and owned 60 acres of land in Kasur
district. Though he was in touch with his family members through letters, today
he is desperate to meet them in person. "I just want to see them through my eyes,"
he says with moist eyes. Mukhtiar was a father figure for fellow inmates due to
his good conduct during his jail term. He always tried to reach out to others
for help. The inmates named him "Bapu Mukhtiar" or "father Mukhtiar". With the
about 200,000 rupees that he earned in jail, Mukhtiar tried to help out others
be it Indian or Pakistani. Mukhtiar's generorsity and kindness has appealed even
jail officials. Once out of the jail, he wishes to pay obeisance at the Harmandir
Sahib (the Golden Temple ) before leaving for Pakistan . He wants to pray for
good relations and peace between the two neighbour countries. According to reports
there are 65 Pak prisoners in Central Jail of Amritsar. Getting released, soon
are Abdul Sharif of Balochistan, Altaf-ur-rehman of Karachi , Mohd. Aslam Khan
of Lahore, Iqbal Saddiqui of Gujranwala, Haran Rashid of Girgitt, Shah Niwaj of
Okarra, Shukla Ghosh, a Pakistani woman and another Pakistani national who is
deaf and dumb. |
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