For early three weeks, 38-year-old Waqas Ahmed, who is believed to be a Pakistani national, has been staying at Bithoor police station in Kanpur after he was released from jail after completing a 10-year sentence. The state government has written to the Ministry of Home Affairs seeking directions in the matter. Advertising Waqas Ahmed was arrested by UP’s Anti Terrorist Squad in 2009 from Kanpur on charges of passing vital information about Army establishments to the ISI. Waqas was not carrying any passport and visa at the time of his arrest. A local court convicted him and sentenced him to 10 years’ imprisonment. “Waqas’s nationality could not be confirmed as no passport and visa was recovered from him. He is apparently a Pakistani national,” said Circle Officer, Local Intelligence Unit (Kanpur), Vijay Tripathi. Waqas was lodged at the Kanpur district jail and was released on March 12. Advertising “The process started after Kanpur district jail authorities informed me on March 2 that he would be released soon. I immediately wrote to the state government which forwarded it to the Ministry of Home Affairs,” said Tripathi. “The state government directed us to keep Waqas on police watch till any further order. In such cases, we used to keep people at police station or at Reserve Police Lines. I kept Waqas at Bithoor police station. Recently, I got a letter from the Ministry of Home Affairs that the Delhi government has been directed to keep Waqas at a detention centre in Delhi till further decision. I am now waiting for the Delhi government order and after obtaining it, Waqas will be sent to the detention centre,” said Tripathi. Station House Officer, Bithoor police station, Sudhir Pawar said, “Waqas reached the police station on March 12 and has been there since. A police team has been deployed to keep a watch on Waqas round-the-clock.” “We are making all possible steps in keeping watch on him and ensuring his safety. We also don’t allow outsiders to interact with Waqas for security reasons,” said Pawar. A Class IX dropout, Waqas Ahmed alias Jahid alias Rajesh Kumar had then allegedly claimed to the police that he hailed from Lahore in Pakistan and was recruited by ISI official in 2004. After training, he was sent to India through Wagah border with a Pakistani passport on April 16, 2005, he allegedly told police. Waqas had also claimed to the police that he had stayed in Surat and Mumbai before shifting to Kanpur. After his arrest, the police then claimed to have recovered documents related to the Army, including maps of restricted areas and a diary containing names and addresses of people living in different Indian and Pakistani cities from Waqas’s possession.

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