He is in his early 70s now. He was a young man when I last saw him and has changed a lot in these 31 years. Looks change with time,even I have grown old, said Harbans Kaur after her first glimpse of her husband Surjeet Singh at their house in Phidde village in Ferozepur. Surjeet was on Thursday morning released from a Pakistani jail after spending 31 years on charges of being a spy. The moment he entered the village,Surjeet got a heros welcome. The celebrations started from Talwandi Bhai chowk,where a decorated open jeep was waiting for him. Amid dhol beats and bhangra,a convoy of jeeps and motorcycles,along with locals,escorted Surjeet to his residence. At home,Surjeet was quick to recognise his sisters Kapooro and Jeeto. He,however,had a tough time,recognising his his friends,cousins and other relatives. I am Nek Chand,your childhood friend, an elderly man reminded him. Standing at his his newly-built house,Surjeet said: The village has changed a lot. In these last 31 years,Surjeet has lost his four brothers and two sisters. We two sisters and Surjeet are all that is left now. I am thankful to God for showing us this day, said Kapooro. To welcome Surjeet,the family had prepared kabuli chole for dinner. He has a sweet tooth,so I will make him kheer,halwa and sewian in the coming days, said Kapooro. Sarabjit Kaur,Surjeets daughter-in-law,who met him for the first time,said: While the whole nation is watching news about our papaji,we dont even have a TV. We have shifted to this only a few days ago. By tomorrow,the dish antenna will work,so we can watch some news about him. The house has turned out to be lucky for the family,said Kirpal Singh,Surjeets nephew. For Harbans Kaur,the wait is finally over. I was sure that my husband will come back one day. I never gave up and am happy that we are again together at this old age, she said. Surjeet speaks PHIDDE: When asked how he was treated at the Pakistani jails,Surjeet claimed the authorities took good care of him. You can see I am fit and fine and keeping good health. I happened to meet the former Pakistan Prime Minister Asif Ali Zardari as well a couple of times and also spoke to Soniaji twice. The Pakistan government was very cooperative. Asked about the charges against him,he said: I went to Pakistan on government duty. I was on a special task and was caught on the second day itself. I am shocked to learn that my family was being given only Rs 350 per month as pension. I will fight for this and demand compensation for all these years.
