Indian on death row in Pak to walk free tomorrow

ISLAMABAD: Indian national Kashmir Singh, held on death row in Pakistani prisons for 35 years after his conviction on espionage charges, will be released on Monday and is expected to be reunited with his family the next day, caretaker Human Rights Minister Ansar Burney said on Sunday. Following the approval of Singh's mercy petition by President Pervez Musharraf, the order for Singh's release was issued by the interior ministry on Saturday. Singh, currently in Lahore's Central Jail, will be handed over to Syed Fahad Burney, acting chairman of the Ansar Burney Trust, on Monday. The trust will take Singh to India by road through the Wagah land border on Tuesday. Singh's wife Paramjit Kaur, who has been struggling for his release since his arrest in 1973, will greet him on the Indian side of the border with family members and friends. Indian High Commissioner Satyabrata Pal spoke with Ansar Burney on Saturday and assured the minister that Singh's travel documents will be issued on Monday. Burney and the staff of his Trust will accompany Singh on the journey to Wagah. Fahad Burney said many of Singh's friends and well-wishers in India had started gathering at the border in anticipation of his return. "The release of Singh is being seen as a significant step of improvement in Pakistani-Indian relations and trust building," said Ansar Burney. The Ansar Burney Trust, one of Pakistan's most prominent rights organisations, is also working for the release of other Indian nationals in Pakistani prisons, particularly fisherman.