As many as 20 Indian fishers, lodged in Landhi jail, Karachi, were released by Pakistan on Monday, November 15. They were transported to Lahore and then handed over to the Indian authorities at the Wagah border in late evening. These fisherfolks are among 376 Indian prisoners who have completed their jail term in Pakistan.
In the opinion of a Mumbai-based journalist, all 376 Indian prisoners shall be released as their jail term has been completed and their nationality as Indians.
Earlier, on November 2, India had released and repatriated 10 Pakistani fishers via the Attari-Wagah border. India too holds around 60 Pakistani fishermen along with over 200 civilian prisoners. Several have completed their jail term but are still imprisoned.
Such continued practices result in flouting Article 12(S) of UN International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights 1976, signed by both India and Pakistan, which says that “No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of the right to enter his own country.”
Also, since 2008, both the countries have regularly exchanged lists of cross-border prisoners in their custody after they signed an Agreement on Consular Access. The exchange is agreed to be taken place every six months – in January and July 1. This includes providing information about the prisoner’s names, date of arrest, charges filed, the status of consular access and case status.
The 20 fisherfolks released on Monday were identified as Ranvir Mega, Babu Kirsan, Bhupat Bhagwan, Naran Parbat, Bhavesh Sharabhai Arjun Babu, Rukhad Arjun, Dana Bhpat, Ransi Bachu, Pola Sadhur, Meepa Aamabhai, Biso Naga, Hareshkumar Parma, Paresh Govindbhai, Ravendra Goindbhai, Bhaveshkumar Makwaran, Taba Lumbhabhai, Vaju Lakhman, Juseb Moosa and Himat Balu, on November 12.
The majority of them hails from the Gir Somnath district of Gujarat and the Union territory of Diu off India’s Una coast.
The Pakistan Marine Security Agency had picked them up on the Pakistan side of the International Maritime Boundary Line on the Arabian Sea off the Kutch coast. This kind of arrest is routinely done on both sides.
Meanwhile, formed in 2007 for the relief of civilian prisoners, an eight-member committee including the India-Pakistan Judicial Committee on prisoners has not met after the meet in India in 2013. Pakistan was supposed to organize the next meet, but there were no initiations from their side. India has already nominated its four members to the committee in 2018, the neighboring country has yet to do so.
