Families of 200 fishermen from Gujarat, Diu and Maharashtra meet Jaishankar, seek their release from prison in Pakistan

The delegation said the fishermen are languishing in Pakistan prisons despite the India-Pakistan Agreement on Consular Access, 2008. They also cited Section 5 of the agreement which says, “Both governments agree to release and repatriate persons within one month of confirmation of their national status and completion of sentences.”

“Despite this agreement, the fishermen continue to remain in Pakistani prisons. Their detention beyond sentence completion has left families without communication for years, causing deep distress.

It has also raised serious concern regarding their health and wellbeing. We request you to kindly look into this matter and take necessary steps to secure their release and repatriation,” the representation read.

They have put forward a total of six demands – release and repatriation of fishermen, urgent medical care and humanitarian return, revival of the Joint Judicial Committee on Prisoners that last met in October 2013, return of confiscated Indian fishing boats and family distress support.

Women of the fisherfolk families and the activists have been raising the issue of release and repatriation of the Indian fishermen in Pakistan jails for sometime now.