Mr Bhanudas Karale surronded by his brother, sons and nephew
Mr Bhanudas Karale was released by the Pakistani authorities on Friday 15th of June 2012. Mr Karale's brother, sons and nephew met him for the first time following his release on Sunday 17th of June.
The family travelled from Mahrashatra to Amritsar to meet and collect Mr Karale.
Mr Karale has disclosed that he was tortured upon his detention by the Pakistani authorities and denied access to medical and legal advice as well access to Consular sevice. This is in gross breach of international human rights legislation.
Further Mr Karale was not tried let alone convicted in a court of law of any offence(s). The Pakistani authorities failed to notify the Indian authorities that they had arrested and detained an Indian national. Pakistan is a signatory to the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.
Under Article 36 of the
Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, 1963
(VCCR), local authorities must notify all detained foreigners "without delay" of
their right to have their consulate informed of their detention. At the request
of the national, the authorities must then notify the consulate without delay,
facilitate unfettered consular communication and grant consular access to the
detainee. Consuls are empowered to arrange for their nationals' legal
representation and to provide a wide range of humanitarian and other assistance,
with the consent of the detainee. Local laws and regulations must give "full
effect" to the rights enshrined in Article 36.
Article 36
Communication and Contact with Nationals of the Sending
State
- With a view to facilitating the exercise of consular functions relating to
nationals of the sending State:
- consular officers shall be free to communicate with nationals of the sending
State and to have access to them. Nationals of the sending State shall have the
same freedom with respect to communication with and access to consular officers
of the sending State;
- if he so requests, the competent authorities of the receiving State shall,
without delay, inform the consular post of the sending State if, within its
consular district, a national of that State is arrested or committed to prison
or to custody pending trial or is detained in any other manner. Any
communication addressed to the consular post by the person arrested, in prison,
custody or detention shall also be forwarded by the said authorities without
delay. The said authorities shall inform the person concerned without delay of
his rights under this sub-paragraph;
- consular officers shall have the right to visit a national of the sending
State who is in prison, custody or detention, to converse and correspond with
him and to arrange for his legal representation. They shall also have the right
to visit any national of the sending State who is in prison, custody or
detention in their district in pursuance of a judgment. Nevertheless, consular
officers shall refrain from taking action on behalf of a national who is in
prison, custody or detention if he expressly opposes such action.
- The rights referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article shall be exercised in
conformity with the laws and regulations of the receiving State, subject to the
proviso, however, that the said laws and regulations must enable full effect to
be given to the purposes for which the rights accorded under this Article are
intended.
News Reports:
http://week.manoramaonline.com/cgi-bin/MMOnline.dll/portal/ep/theWeekContent.do?programId=1073754900&contentId=11862215
Hindi:
http://chandigarh.punjabkesari.in/chandigarh/fullstory/31973934_218306-#.T9wOybqsNSY.email
Punjabi:
http://jagbani.in/Punjab/fullstory/28848960_56842#.T9wN6OEkaqc.email
A reconstruction by India's TV programme 'Crime Patrol' of Mr Bhanudas Vitthale Karale's disappearance and subsequent release from Kot Lakphat Prison, Lahore Pakistan (Part 1): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFjPRI_RpKI&feature=em-share_video_user
Video interview: 17/06/2012
Copyright 2012 Jas Uppal
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