Kob village is in Una taluka of Gir Somnath district of Gujarat. Bijalbhai Bhalia, who lived here, used to do fishing.
On February 7, 2022, he was fishing in the sea with his son Ashwin. Then Pakistan Marine Security Agency arrested him for entering Pakistan's territorial waters.
After this, Bijalbhai, Ashwin and four other fishermen were jailed in Pakistan.
Bijalbhai fell ill in Pakistan jail. About 50 year old Bijalbhai died in jail. His 26 year old son Ashwin was also lodged in the same jail.
Activists working for fishermen say that due to the ongoing dispute over the maritime boundary between India and Pakistan in the Arabian Sea, the families of fishermen have to face many tragic incidents.
punishment completed but not released
The sentence of Bijalbhai's son Ashwin had been completed four years ago. But he is still in jail. Pakistan sent Bijalbhai's body to India three weeks after his death.
Bijalbhai's family members are meeting the local leaders of Gir Somnath. They are asking for their help in getting Ashwin released from Pakistan jail.
BBC Gujarati has asked questions about this to the officials of Pakistan's Landhi Jail. No response has been received from their side yet. Once the reply is received, it will be included in this report.
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How did father and son end up in Pakistan's custody?
Bijalbhai has four sons. Ashwin is at number three. Bijalbhai's youngest son Mansingh told BBC that his father was Tandel i.e. Captain on the fishing trawler named 'Nadita Sagar' owned by Vijayaben Solanki of Porbandar.
Mansingh told that Ashwin also used to go fishing on the boat with his father. He said that his father and brother had gone out for fishing in a boat from Porbandar on 4 February 2022.
Mansingh said, "My father was the eldest among his five brothers. He started working on fishing boats since childhood. Seeing him, all four of us brothers also became fishermen. At the time Ashwin was caught, his wife Dakshaben was pregnant."
Mansingh said, "After about four months, Dakshaben gave birth to son Harpal. Harpal is now four years old, but till date he has not seen his father."
He said, "My father had no previous illness. But he fell ill in jail. We came to know about it through a letter."
Did Bijalbhai not get proper treatment?
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Mumbai-based journalist Jatin Desai has been the general secretary of the Indian chapter of 'Pakistan-India People's Forum for Peace and Democracy', a non-governmental organization that tries to improve relations between India and Pakistan.
He also works for fishermen. Jatin Desai told BBC Gujarati that Bijalbhai was kept in Landhi jail near Karachi.
He said, "After Bijalbhai fell ill, he was admitted to Jinnah Post Graduate Medical Center (JPMC) in Karachi. He died in the hospital on August 27. Pakistan later handed over his body to India. His body reached his village on the night of 18 and 19 September."
Mansingh told that his father had diabetes and high blood pressure.
He said, "When Pakistan caught him, he was not suffering from any disease. After being imprisoned, he suffered from diabetes and blood pressure problem. We came to know about this through other people. Ashwin took complete care of his father in the jail."
Mansingh alleges that his father did not get good treatment and if he had got proper treatment, perhaps he would not have died like this.
Jatin Desai said, "While fishing, Bijalbhai's boat inadvertently went towards Pakistan's territorial waters. After this, Pakistan Marine Security Agency caught him."
"A Pakistani court convicted Bijalbhai of illegally entering Pakistan's maritime territory. He was sentenced to a few weeks' imprisonment. His sentence was completed on 16 March 2022."
He said, "After completion of the sentence, Pakistan should have immediately released Bijalbhai from jail and sent him to India. If he had been sent back to his home, perhaps he would have been alive today."
Bijalbhai is the second Indian fisherman to die in a Pakistani jail this year. Earlier on January 16, an Indian fisherman named Bhagabhai Bambhaniya had died in a Pakistani jail.
37 year old Bhagabhai was a resident of Chikhali village of Una taluka.
What is the demand of the family?
Jatin Desai says that Pakistan could have shown sensitivity after the death of Bijalbhai.
Jatin Desai said, "Ashwin's jail sentence has also been completed long ago. Despite this, Pakistan has kept him in jail. Bijalbhai and his son Ashwin were kept in the same jail. So it is natural that Ashwin would know about his father's death."
He said, "The family was already in shock due to Bijalbhai's death. The family had hoped that Ashwin would also be released and sent to India along with Bijalbhai's body. On such an occasion, Pakistan could have shown sensitivity and humanity by releasing Ashwin, so that he could perform the last rites of his father."
Mansingh also said that the family's grief doubled due to Ashwin's absence at the time of his father's funeral.
He said, "We have met local leaders and sought help. We have appealed to them to release Ashwin from Pakistan jail."
According to Jatin Desai, currently 197 Indian fishermen are lodged in Pakistani jails.
He said, "Out of these, there are 177 fishermen whose jail sentence has been completed. The verification of their Indian citizenship has also been completed. After the completion of both these processes, the fishermen should not be kept in jail even for a day. Doing so will be considered illegal."
He said, "We appeal to the Pakistan government to immediately release all these Indian fishermen from jail and send them back to India."
