‘Was looking for target when shot down’

WAGAH: Pakistan handed the captured Indian pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman over to the Indian authorities late Friday night.

Under bright floodlights amid a heavy security presence, Abhinandan – dressed in navy blue blazers, white shirt and grey trousers – with a black eye smiled as he crossed into India through the Attari-Wagah border on foot at the Wagah border and shook hands with security officials.

He was brought to the border in a high-profile security convoy. Indian Air Attaché in Pakistan had reached Lahore along with travel documents of the pilot. As Abhinandan reached the border, he was taken to the Immigration Department for clearance. A large number of local and international media men had reached the border for covering the event.

It was scheduled to hand over the pilot to the BSF at 5pm. However, his departure was delayed due to procedural issues. He was received by the BSF officials as he stepped into the Indian territory.

Earlier, Abhinandan was handed over to the Indian High Commission in Pakistan. From there, he was brought to the border. The BSF had cancelled its flag-lowering and retreat ceremony at the border in view of the pilot's return. However, on the Pakistani side, a large of people had gathered to witness the flag-lowering ceremony. The charged crowd chanted Pakistan Zindabad and sang national songs

Agencies add: "Wing Commander Abhinandan, Indian POW, returned to India today, as committed by PM Khan in his address to joint sitting of Parliament, yesterday," Foreign Office spokesman Dr Mohammad Faisal tweeted.

The Foreign Office of Pakistan said while in captivity, Abhinandan was treated "with dignity and in line with international law". Escorted by the Pakistan Rangers till the Zero Line that marks the India-Pakistan land border, he was received by Indian security officers and whisked away.

Wing Commander Abhinandan was captured when his MiG-21 among two Indian military aircraft was shot down by the Pakistan Air Force after they ventured into the Pakistani airspace.

He came home to a rousing reception; hundreds of Indians waving the national flag and garlands awaited his arrival all day. ""We are happy to have him back," he said. He will be taken for a detailed medical checkup. The officer has had to eject from a plane which would have put his body under immense strain," said Air Vice Marshal RGK Kapoor, reading out a short statement and refusing to take questions.

The pilot's homecoming, which inspired many hashtags on the social media, was celebrated across the nation. Thousands of Indians, some waving flags and singing, had crowded in early to get a glimpse of Abhinandan, clutching sweets and garlands as they waited for his return.

A group of schoolchildren brandished a painting of the pilot, along with saffron, white and green Indian flags and placards reading: "Hope for peace between India & Pakistan" and "Thank you Imran Khan", referring to Pakistan´s prime minister.

An old man with a white beard banged a drum as groups of young men sang and danced. A new videotaped statement of Wg Cdr Abhinandan was broadcast on the national television shortly before his release.

"My name is Wing Commander Abhinandan," he stated for the record in the statement. "I am a fighter pilot in the Indian Air Force. I was in search of the target when your [Pakistan] Air Force shot me down. I had to eject the plane which had sustained damage. As soon as I ejected and when my parachute opened and when I fell down, I had a pistol with me."

"There were many people. I had only one way to save myself: I dropped my pistol and tried to run," he was heard saying in the video. "People chased me, their emotions were running high. Just then, two Pakistani Army officials came and saved me. Pakistani army captains saved from the people and did not let any harm come to me. They took me to their unit where I was administered first aid and then I was taken to the hospital where I further underwent a medical exam and received more aid," he said.

"The Pakistan Army is a very professional service. I see peace in it. I have spent time with the Pakistan Army [and] I am very impressed." "Indian media always stretches the truth," he regretted. "The smallest of things are presented in a very incendiary manner and people get misled."