Pakistan hands over list of 250 Indian prisoners, comprising 52 civilian prisoners and 198 fishermen
Pakistani Rangers (wearing black uniforms) and Indian Border Security Force (BSF) officers lower their national flags during Pakistan’s 72nd Independence Day parade, at the Pakistan-India joint check post at the Wagah border, near Lahore. PHOTO: REUTERS/FILE
Pakistan and India on Wednesday exchanged lists of prisoners held in each other’s custody under a bilateral agreement on consular access, with Islamabad urging New Delhi to repatriate 97 Pakistani prisoners who had completed their sentences and whose nationalities had been confirmed.
The exchange was conducted through diplomatic channels in accordance with the Consular Access Agreement signed on May 21, 2008, under which both countries are required to exchange lists of detainees on January 1 and July 1 each year, the State Department said.
According to the statement, Pakistan handed over a list of 250 Indian prisoners in its custody to the Indian High Commission in Islamabad. The list includes 52 civilian prisoners and 198 fishermen.
At the same time, India shared a list of 439 Pakistani or “believed to be Pakistani” prisoners held in Indian jails. The list included 386 civilian prisoners and 53 fishermen, the statement said.
The ministry said Pakistan had also urged India to “release and repatriate 97 Pakistani prisoners (64 civilian prisoners and 33 fishermen) who have completed their sentences and whose nationality has been confirmed.”
It also urged New Delhi to “ensure the safety, security and welfare of all Pakistani and suspected Pakistani prisoners awaiting release and repatriation.”
Pakistan further urged India to provide “expeditious consular access to all suspected Pakistani detainees to facilitate early confirmation of their nationality,” according to the statement.
Confirming Islamabad’s position, the Foreign Office said: “The Pakistani government will continue its efforts to ensure the early return of all Pakistani prisoners.”
The exchange of prisoner lists is a routine confidence-building measure carried out twice a year, on 1 January and 1 July, under the 2008 bilateral agreement on consular access between the two countries.
The annual exchange, a rare surviving mechanism of engagement between the two nuclear-armed neighbors, took place despite lingering tensions after the four-day conflict last May and the absence of a structured dialogue process.
While limited diplomatic protocols have continued, Islamabad has simultaneously expressed strong concern over India’s alleged violations of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT). For more than six decades, India and Pakistan amicably managed the Indus River system through the IWT Transboundary Water Sharing Treaty, signed on September 19, 1960. In April last year, India suspended the treaty in the wake of the Pahalgam attack.
Addressing an international seminar titled “The Indus Waters Treaty: A Key Instrument for Peace and Regional Stability” in Islamabad on Tuesday, Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar warned India that any attempt to deprive Pakistan of its legal water rights under the treaty would have profound implications for peace and security in South Asia.
