Over 260 Indians lodged in Pakistani jails

By Islamuddin Sajid

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AA) - Pakistan on Monday handed over a list of over 260 Indian prisoners, lodged in Pakistani jails, to the Indian mission in Islamabad, official said.

"The government of Pakistan today handed over a list of 261 Indian prisoners [52 civil and 209 fishermen] in Pakistan, to the High Commission of India in Islamabad" Pakistani Foreign Office Spokesman Mohammad Faisal, said in a statement.

Under a bilateral agreement, both countries are required to exchange lists of prisoner in each other’s custody twice a year, January 1 and July 1, respectively, he added.

The Indian government will also share the list of Pakistani prisoners lodged in its jails with Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi.

In April this year, Pakistan announced to release 360 Indian prisoners that included 355 fishermen after they had completed their terms of sentence. They were handed over to Indian authorities in four batches.

The two countries often arrest fishermen, for violating maritime boundaries. Both are yet to demarcate their sea boundaries, due to dispute on Sir Creek -- a 96-kilometer (60-mile) tidal estuary which opens up into the Arabian Sea, dividing the Indian province of Gujarat and the Sindh province of Pakistan.

The ill-equipped boats that lack technology to specify exact locations are also responsible for fishermen crossing the boundaries without intention.

The two longtime rivals have been locked in diplomatic and military tensions following a suicide attack on an army convoy in Indian-administered Kashmir in February that killed at least 40 Indian troops.

Tensions mounted further after Indian jets intruded into Pakistan's airspace and bombed a suspected militant hideout near the border in February. The next day, Pakistan’s air force claimed downing two jets and captured a pilot, who was later released.

The two South Asian nations have fought three wars in 1948, 1965 and 1971 -- two of them over Kashmir -- since they were partitioned in 1947.