Pakistan released 145 Indian fishermen on Thursday as a goodwill gesture even as 140 more prisoners continue to languish in a jail in Karachi.
The fishermen were freed from Karachi’s Malir Jail, Dawn News reported. They had been arrested trespassing into Pakistani waters.
Edhi Foundation head Faisal Edhi, who presented gifts and cash to the fishermen, said negotiations were underway for the release of 140 more Indian prisoners.
After their release, the fisherman were taken with tight security to Karachi cantonment railway station, from where they were sent to Lahore in a train. They will be handed over to Indian authorities at the Wagah land border crossing.
The Indian prisoners appeared delighted on being released and were looking forward to their repatriation, the report said.
They appreciated the way they were treated by Pakistani prison authorities and told Dawn News that they would ask Indian authorities to free Pakistani prisoners held in Indian jails.
The fishermen were released against the backdrop of a spat between the two countries over the treatment meted out to the wife and mother of Kulbhushan Jadhav, a former Indian Navy official sentenced to death for alleged involvement in spying, during a meeting in Islamabad on December 25.
India has protested about the removal of the jewellery and shoes of Jadhav’s wife and the intimidating atmosphere at the meeting. External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj has described as “absurd” Pakistan’s contention that Jadhav’s wife’s shoes were taken away because they contained a metallic substance.
Every year, the two countries arrest hundreds of fishermen on charges of straying across the maritime boundary. Many of them languish in jail for months and years before being freed.