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Indian soldiers return home

After remaining in captivity for more than a fortnight in Pakistan, Lance Naik Ram Singh and Sepoy Barjinder Singh of the Rajput Regiment were today handed over to the Indian Army authorities at Wagah joint check post.

The officials of the Indian high commission in Islamabad accompanied the armymen to the border.

The two were taken captive in the last week of August while on patrol duty along the line of control in Kashmir

There was an obvious sense of relief on the faces of the soldiers when they crossed the zero line and stepped onto their motherland.

Officials of the Pakistan Rangers in charge of the JCP and Pakistan customs and immigration officials completed all formalities before the jawans were handed over to two officers of the rank of colonel belonging to the Panthers Division in-charge of the Amritsar sector.

The soldiers were taken to the Panther Division's headquarters at Amritsar.

The media was not allowed to take any pictures or go anywhere near the army officials who had come to receive the soldiers.

The two soldiers, who were handed over to the Indian high commission by the International Red Cross Committee at Islamabad yesterday, were brought by road to the check post.

Initially, they were to arrive at 1430 hours, but they reached the Pakistan side of the post at 1630 hours.

At 1655 hours they crossed the zero line to step onto their homeland.

The scene at the check-post was quite opposite to what it was when Flt.Lt. Nachiketa of the Indian Air Force, taken prisoner in the Kargil conflict, came home from Pakistan.

Mediamen were present in strength when Flt.Lt. Nachiketa was handed over to the Indian authorities here, but today the media was kept at a distance and only a few newspersons managed to sneek into the check post premises.

The two army officials who had come to receive the two jawans said that they had instructions from their head quarters in New Delhi not to allow media to cover today's event. Even on the Pakistan side mediamen were not present.

Except for the Amritsar senior superintendent of police no other senior civil or police officials were present during the handing over.

UNI

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