Sarabjits family wants to meet Pak PM to seek clemency

The family of Sarabjit Singh, the Indian man on death row in Pakistan, is making every effort to get his execution order of May 1 revoked, and has expressed a desire to meet Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and other politicians in connection with it.

Lahore, Apr.27 : The family of Sarabjit Singh, the Indian man on death row in Pakistan, is making every effort to get his execution order of May 1 revoked, and has expressed a desire to meet Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and other politicians in connection with it.

Talking to Daily Times, Sarabjit's sister, Dalbir, said that the family wanted to meet Gilani, Pakistan People's Party Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz chief Nawaz Sharif to request for clemency for Sarabjit.

"But so far we have no permission to go to Islamabad. We have heard from the media that permission has been granted, but no one has told us so far," she was quoted, as saying.

She said that she had met Human Rights Commission Pakistan Chairperson Asma Jehangir and also had talked with Ansar Burney Trust Chairman Ansar Burney over the phone.

"They have assured me of their full support in raising the issue on humanitarian grounds," she said.

Dalbir said that she had been in contact with Jehangir since 2000 and had provided her all necessary documents, including a ration card, to prove Sarabjit's identity.

"Asma has assured me that the HRCP would make an appeal to the government to stop Sarabjit's execution. In addition, she all assured that she would raise our voice for his clemency," she said.

She said that Asma had told her that the HRCP was trying to get capital punishment abolished and that irrespective of a person's nationality or religion, he or she should not be executed.

Dalbir also said that despite pressure from the government, the witness of the incident, Shaukat Ali, had also stated that Sarabjit was innocent.

She said that she would meet Ansar Burney today and that he had assured of his full support for Sarabjit's clemency. She said Burney hoped that the Pakistani government would pardon Sarabjit on humanitarian grounds.

"Sarabjit has given a message to the Pakistani and Indian governments that he is innocent and that he is wrongly convicted in the 1990 bombings. He has appealed to both the governments to release innocent people who wrongly crossed the border of the other country," she said.

Neither Asma Jahangir nor Ansar Burney was available for comment.

Meanwhile, three daughters of a victim who died in a bomb blast on a passenger train in 1991 at Abdullahpur Cooler Railway Station said on Saturday that they would begin a hunger strike if the alleged perpetrator of the attack Sarabjit Singh were released.

Nawaz Fazal and her sisters told Online that her family would maintain the hunger strike "until death" if the government pardoned Sarabjit Singh, currently due to be hanged on April 30.

Fourteen people were killed in the 1991 bombings in Lahore and Multan.

ANI