Sarabjit now sentenced life imprisonment

Lahore, Jan 3: Pakistan may give some relief to the Indian national allegedly involved in the Faisalabad and Multan bomb attacks, by converting his death sentence into life imprisonment.

Pakistan's Law Minister Farooq H Naek sent a message to the Interior Ministry, urging it to commute the death penalty of Sarabjit Singh into a life sentence, The News reports.

Sarabjit was arrested on the alleged charges of being involved in the bomb attacks in Faisalabad and Multan killing more than 15 people and injuring many. He is currently confined in Kot Lakhpat Jail.

Renowned human rights figure in Pakistan, Ansar Burney, said that the Law Ministry had sent a formal proposal to the Interior Ministry to convert all death sentences to life imprisonment.

"If this initiative taken by the Law Ministry is supported by the Interior Ministry, it will apply to all cases of prisoners awaiting death, including Sarabjit. One cannot make a distinction by saying that a convict was involved in terrorism," Burney said.

Burney also wrote a letter to the interior ministry to give clarification whether or not Ajmal Kasab was a Pakistani national.

"The Pakistani media has already released sufficient material and evidence identifying him as a Pakistani national and the Interior Ministry's silence is creating doubts and uncertainty in the region, which is in no way a good approach," he said.

After his arrest in 1991, Sarabjit's family has continuously been requesting the Pakistan government to release him by claiming that the government had mistaken him for Manjit Singh, who might have been involved in the bombing incidents.

ANI