Supreme Court expresses shock over Pakistanis in Indian jails, seeks status report


Supreme Court expresses shock over Pakistanis in Indian jails, seeks status report

Dhananjay Mahapatra, TNN

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday expressed shock and dismay over 2 Pakistanis being kept in Jammu and Kashmir prisons for over 40 years without ever having faced trial.

The court, hearing a public interest case filed by a member of the public, ordered the central government to file a comprehensive report explaining the detentions, AFP reported.

“It’s shocking that over 254 Pakistani nationals are languishing in jails without a trial,” said Supreme Court judge RN Lodha.

The inmates are being held in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, with many thought to be people arrested after unwittingly crossing the disputed border in the area, the court heard. Four are women.

It is thought that there may be inmates held without trial in other states too.

The prime ministers of India and Pakistan said on Thursday they expected to open a “new chapter” in their fractious relationship after talks at a regional summit in the Maldives.




Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *