Fayaz Bukhari
SRINAGAR, Feb 5: The State Government today said that the trans-Line of Control (LoC) trade standoff between India and Pakistan would be resolved soon and the detained drivers would return to their countries in a few days.
Deputy Commissioner Baramulla, Ghulam Ahmad Khawaja told Excelsior today:”We are in touch with the Ministry of Home Affairs in New Delhi on the issue to end the trade standoff. Soon as directions from both the Governments of India and Pakistan are issued to start a legal process over the release of the detained drivers, the standoff will end. We are hopeful that the issue will be resolved within few days as directions are expected soon.”
The families of 27 Kashmiri truck drivers today protested against their continued detention. They were detained by Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) authorities on January 17 after the arrest of driver of PoK truck, Mohammad Shafiq Awan, bearing registration number RIS-102137 at Salamabad Trade Facilitation Centre, in Uri North Kashmir.
Around 150 families’ members and relatives of the detained truck drivers blocked the National Highway at Khanpora in Baramulla town this morning for around one hour leading to traffic jams.
The family members were raising slogans against the Government for its failure to end the trade standoff. The families of the drivers said that these drivers are not at fault and have been unnecessarily detained.
“We will continue our protest. Deputy Commissioner had assured us that the issue will be resolved by Monday and today we came out in protest as the promise was not fulfilled”, said one of the protestor. The protesters said that they will continue the protests till the drivers are released.
The Deputy Commissioner Baramulla rushed to the spot and assured the families that the drivers will be released soon. “I have requested the families of detained drivers to wait for some days”, he added.
The families later dispersed after the assurance from the DC but threatened to block the highway if the drivers are not released.
The DC said that they were expecting a breakthrough but yesterday’s meeting was inconclusive. “Pakistan’s demand was that the driver should be released on bail. We told them everything will be resolved through legal procedure. We asked them to release drivers and don’t block the trade over the issue”, the DC said.
Indian authorities yesterday exchanged FIR copy of the case registered in the recovery of brown sugar and the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) report of the narcotics.
The trans-LoC trade standoff started on January 17 after PoK driver was arrested following recovery of 114 kilogramme of Brown Sugar from his truck at Salamabad. Pakistan in retaliation detained 27 Kashmiri truck drivers and refused to allow their own 48 drivers to cross the LoC towards PoK.
India insists that let all the detained drivers be released and law decide the fate of the arrested driver but Pakistan refuses to end the standoff and demands release of the arrested driver.
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