A smiling Shamsuddin met his sobbing daughters, and his sister lost consciousness briefly seeing the 70-year-old after such a long time. There was a Diwali-like atmosphere in the entire locality where he lived.

Shamsuddin, jailed in Pakistan on espionage charges, was waiting for eight years to meet his family. That wait finally came to an end on Sunday when the 70-year-old was brought back by authorities to his native place near Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh.

A smiling Shamsuddin met his sobbing daughters, and his sister lost consciousness briefly seeing the 70-year-old after such a long time. There was a Diwali-like atmosphere in the entire locality where he lived.

Shamsuddin had reached India via the Attari-Wagah border on October 26, but was serving the required quarantine period in Amritsar amid the Covid-19 outbreak.

The Uttar Pradesh Police reached Kanpur with Shamsuddin at 9:45 am and handed him over to the family members after initial paperwork.

“For us, this Diwali has become memorable. My daughter was also born on Diwali... Her prayers are over,” HT’s sister website Live Hindustan quoted Shamshuddin as saying.

A shoemaker by profession, Shamsuddin was arrested in Pakistan in 2012. He spent eight long years in Pakistani prison after been convicted for espionage charge.

He was also charged with possessing a fake passport.