A 48-year-old Indian man from Kerala, who was allegedly arrested by the Pakistan Army for illegally crossing the border, died in a jail in Karachi last week as per reports. The Kerala Police received information about Zulfikar's death on May 21, Sunday. His body is set to be handed over to officials at the India-Punjab border within a few days and then transported to his hometown in Palakkad, where it is expected to be received by his family. Contrary to speculations that he was a supporter of the banned terror outfit Islamic State (IS), the government has reportedly informed Zulfikar’s family that he was working as a fisherman before he was arrested in Pakistan.
Zulfikar’s father Abdul Hameed told Asianet News that the family came to know about his death on Sunday night. “An inspector, who is an acquaintance of mine, works at the Special Branch. He called me to ask if we have any information about (Zulfikar) and I said no. He then claimed that somebody told him Zulfikar returned. After some time, my son (Zulfikar's brother) told me that he passed away,” he said.
Abdul Hameed said the family had not heard anything from him ever since Zulfikar left for Qatar. “I had asked (the officer at the Special Branch) if they had any information about him. But they did not,” he said, adding that officials from the Special Branch and Intelligence Bureau had come to their house to enquire about Zulfikar.
Unlike what some news reports have been claiming, the family has no hesitation in receiving the body, Zulfikar’s cousin said. “We did not say that we won't receive the body. He is my uncle’s son. But my uncle is unwell and cannot travel too far to receive the body,” he said.
The cousin said the government has informed the family that Zulfikar was a fisherman. “So we have no issues receiving his body. If that wasn’t the case (and Zulfikar was proven to have any suspicious links), we wouldn't have done so,” he added.
According to some residing in the area near his house at Kappur in Palakkad, Zulfikar was last seen in his home town in 2018, and he along with his family were settled in the UAE. His wife and children returned home later.
With IANS inputs