Khalil Chishti arrives in Pakistan

Islamabad, May 16 (PTI) Ailing virologist Khalil Chishti, held up in India's Rajasthan state for nearly two decades and also imprisoned for over 15 months on a charge of involvement in a murder, arrived in Pakistan Tuesday night after being given special permission by India's Supreme Court to return home to meet his family. The 82-year-old Chishti flew from New Delhi to Islamabad in a special aircraft sent by President Asif Ali Zardari. He was received at the Benazir Bhutto International Airport by Interior Minister Rehman Malik, who presented him a floral wreath. A large crowd, including workers of the Pakistan People's Party, showered petals on Chishti as he emerged from the airport in a wheelchair. "I had no hope at all but it is thanks to Allah that He gave an opportunity to President Zardari to travel to India and to take up my issue (with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh)," Chishti told the media at the airport. "The Indian Prime Minister is a merciful person and heard the plea of Pakistani leaders. He helped me after seeing my condition," he added. Interior Minister Malik thanked President Zardari and Prime Minister Singh for facilitating the release of Chishti. He said that during a meeting with Singh in Delhi on April 8, Zardari took up Chishti's issue before other bilateral matters. The President also took follow-up action and sent his special aircraft to bring back Chishti, Malik said. Footage aired on TV news channels showed Chishti’s home in the southern Pakistan port city of Karachi had been decorated by his family. His wife and daughters stood on a balcony and waved to a large gathering that had gathered outside the house. Earlier in the day, diplomatic sources told PTI that Pakistani authorities had obtained permission for the special aircraft to go to Delhi to bring back Chishti. The virologist will have to hand over his passport to the Indian High Commission as part of conditions set by the India's Supreme Court for his return. On May 10, India's Supreme Court allowed Chishti to visit Pakistan for a temporary stay before his appeal against his conviction in the murder case is taken up. Chishti, a resident of Karachi, is accused of involvement in the murder of a man during a brawl in the town of Ajmer in the northwest Indian state of Rajasthan in April 1992. Chishti was then visiting India to meet his relatives in Ajmer including his ailing mother as also to offer prayers at the shrine of Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti. In January last year, Chishti was given life imprisonment after an 18-year trial. After the sentencing, he was detained in Ajmer Jail. India's Supreme Court ordered Chishti’s release on bail a month ago. In a personal letter sent to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh last month, President Asif Ali Zardari asked for Chishti to be released and repatriated on humanitarian grounds. Zardari had also taken up the issue of Chishti with Singh during a day-long private visit to India on April 8. PTI