Three surrendered militants return to Pakistan from J&K

After officials found them missing,they checked with relatives and neighbours,and informed the police that the families had returned to Pakistan. The reason: The wives and children had apparently refused to stay in Kashmir,and the government had allegedly backtracked on the promises it had made to them.

Two of the three families are from North Kashmir’s Bandipore district,and the third is from Srinagar,sources said on Friday. They said two families had already reached Pakistan,and the third was on the way.

“We have information that three former militants have gone back to Pakistan after their families refused to stay in the Valley,” a senior police officer said. He did not explain how these families travelled to Pakistan without passports or other travel documents.

Soon after their arrival in the Valley,the former militants and their family members had told The Indian Express that they had destroyed their travel documents in Nepal before entering India. Sources,however,said that this may not have been true and that the documents may have been preserved — which may now have been used to go back.

Officials said they were worried that more disillusioned families might try to return to Pakistan.

Dawood Ahmad,a former militant who returned with his family last year,said,“Most families that returned to Kashmir are struggling to make ends meet,our children don’t get admission in schools,and families have many social issues here.”

“Given a chance,a majority of those who returned to the Valley would like to go back. We have no jobs,and no future for our children here,and our Pakistani wives are missing their relatives there,” he said.

Over the past two years,265 people who had no police cases in the Valley have returned,many with their wives and children. At least another 1,089 have sought permission to return. The arrest of Liyaqat Ali Shah by the Delhi Police earlier this year has,however,given made several families jittery,sources said.

According to official records,3,947 Kashmiris who had crossed the Line of Control are still in Pakistan.