Thaindian News

New Delhi, Sep 9 (IANS) Conveying Eid greetings to his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi, External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna Thursday thanked him for releasing 442 Indian fishermen and said that New Delhi will repatriate seven Pakistani fishermen and 24 civilian prisoners Sep 15.

In a letter to Qureshi, Krishna conveyed the deep appreciation of the people and government of India on the release of 442 Indian fishermen who had been in various jails in Pakistan, the external affairs ministry said here.

The Indian government has conveyed to Islamabad its decision to repatriate seven Pakistani fishermen and 24 civilian prisoners Sep 15, the external affairs ministry said.

“Further steps are being taken, in cooperation with the government of Pakistan, to release and repatriate other eligible Pakistani prisoners lodged in Indian jails,” Krishna said.

While thanking the Pakistan government, Krishna said that he looked forward to an early release and repatriation of all Indian and Pakistani prisoners to their respective countries.

Krishna also conveyed his greetings to Qureshi on the forthcoming festival of Eid-ul-Fitr and underlined India’s commitment to work with Pakistan for the common good of the two countries.

This is the first concrete quid pro quo on an important humanitarian issue since the talks between the two foreign ministers broke down July 15 over a host of issues like Pakistan’s insistence on setting a timeline to resolve all outstanding issues including Jammu and Kashmir.