The two staff members of the Indian High Commission were reported missing at 8 a.m. on Monday.
New Delhi:
The two members of the Indian high commission detained by the Pakistani police and released Monday evening, after having been missing for 8 hours that day, were “forcibly removed … kept in illegal detention for more than 10 hours” , said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. today in a strongly worded statement.
The ministry also said the two staff members, the two drivers, were “subjected to interrogation, torture and physical assault, which resulted in serious injuries.”
“They were videotaped and forced to accept a litany of fictitious allegations and concocted charges. The vehicle of the High Commission, in which they were traveling, was badly damaged,” the statement said.
The Pakistani Foreign Ministry said the two staff members were involved in a road accident.
The government also said that the case of the Pakistani High Commission had been summoned and a strong protest had been lodged over it.
Shortly after their disappearance disappeared Monday morning, government sources suggested they were in the custody of Pakistan’s Inter Services Intelligence (ISI).
New Delhi had filed a complaint with the Pakistani government and, in today’s statement, said the two were only released after strong intervention on their part.
“This premeditated, serious and provocative action … preceded by intensified surveillance, harassment and intimidation by the staff of the High Commission … was designed to hinder and disrupt the normal functioning of the High Commission Indian, “said the ministry.
Saying that the government “firmly condemns and deplores this action”, the press release rejects any “attempt by the Pakistani authorities to lay false charges and is preparing charges against the officials of the High Commission”.
The incident comes weeks after two Pakistani officials at the Pakistani High Commission in New Delhi were charged with espionage and deported. The two worked in the visa section in Delhi and were reportedly caught in the act of spying.
Several top Indian diplomats in Pakistan have also been aggressively followed in Islamabad in recent days, and India has protested against excessive surveillance.
In March, the Indian High Commission in Pakistan sent a strong protest note to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad to protest the harassment of its officers and staff.
Ties between India and Pakistan have been strained in recent years and have worsened with recent incidents of border shootings and terrorist attacks in Kashmir.
