Youth 'kidnapped' by LeT returns to India from PoK

Jammu: A youth, who was apparently kidnapped by LeT terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir and taken to PoK for arms training, escaped on Wednesday to the Indian side of the state along with his Pakistani wife and three children, seeking safety and shelter, officials said.

Mukhtar Ahmed, aged 25, crossed over to the Indian side from across the LoC and pleaded with the army to allow him and his family to return to their village in Poonch district in Jammu and Kashmir.

"The family includes Ahmed, his wife Safia, 24 and three small children named Mavia Hussain, 6, Mohd Zabeer, 3, and Fatima, an infant of eight months. The family was in a bad condition and pleaded for shelter on the Indian side from the troops of Indian Army," said army spokesperson Col R K Palta.

The youth was apparently kidnapped by LeT terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir and taken to PoK for arms training.

"The troops immediately extended food and first aid to the family," he said.

It was around 5 am in the morning when troops deployed on the Line of Control (LoC) in the Mendhar Sector, noticed unusual movement near the house of Mohd Taj, a village watchman of the border village Dheri.

When they reached the village to investigate the unusual movement, it was found that one family had crossed over to India from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).

Mukhtar Ahmed told the troops that he belonged to village Hadi Marot of Surankot tehsil. He had been kidnapped by Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists and forcibly taken to Pakistan where he was forced to undergo training as a militant.

However, he escaped from the training camp and was leading a life of misery and poverty. Not being able to make ends meet and having no other alternative, he decided to return to his parent country.

"After giving humanitarian assistance to the family, the army authorities have now handed over the family to the district administration and civil police," the spokesman said.

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