By Muhammad Luqman
As many as 68 Indian fishermen released from a jail of Pakistan’s port city of Karachi crossed over Wagha border to return their home on Monday.
Indian fishermen were arrested for violating Pakistan’s territorial waters. A ceremony was held at Landhi Jail in Karachi before they left for Lahore to leave for India via Wagha border. The fishermen were given Ajraks – traditional Sindhi shawls – among other gifts on the occasion.
Pakistan and India frequently arrest fishermen as the maritime border in Arabian Sea is poorly defined and many boats lack the technology to be aware of their precise location.
Fishermen often languish in jails even after serving their term due to strained diplomatic ties between the two arch-rivals, which make fulfilling of official requirements a ‘time consuming’ task.
However, authorities in the two countries release a few of these poor fishermen from time to time as ‘goodwill gesture’.
A number of Afghan nationals, imprisoned under various charges, have also been released from Karachi Jail as a goodwill gesture and these have left for Afghanistan through Chaman border.
