LAHORE: The body of Pakistani prisoner Shakirullah, who was stoned to death by fellow inmates in Rajasthan’s Jaipur Central Jail last month, was handed over to Pakistan at Wagah border point on Saturday, a private TV channel reported.
The Pakistani prisoner was brutally murdered by other inmates at the Indian jail in the wake of heightened tensions between Islamabad and New Delhi following the Pulwama attack in Held Kashmir, which India blamed on Pakistan. The attack in the occupied valley had resulted in the death of more than 40 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel. The responsibility for the attack was claimed by militant group Jaish-e-Mohammed.
Shakirullah had been in the Indian jail since 2001.
Pakistan had lodged its protest with India after the inspector general of police (IG) for Rajasthan and in-charge of prisons confirmed the news of Shakirullah’s murder on February 20. “The Pakistani prisoner had been eight years into a life term when he was attacked at the Jaipur central jail. He was stoned to death following a quarrel,” in-charge of prisons Kapil Garg had said.
On Friday, Pakistan handed over captured pilot Abhinandan Varthaman to Indian authorities at the Wagah border crossing as a ‘peace gesture’ to de-escalate the rising tensions between the two South Asian rivals.
