New Delhi: Moved by the plight of a child under threat of being separated from her Pakistani mother, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has issued a notice to Home Ministry seeking report by July 29 into the incident.

The commission took cognisance of a news report and a complaint about one Shahnawaz, a Pakistani national who reportedly tried to commit suicide by jumping into the river but was washed ashore on the Indian side of the river bank.

This resulted in her one-year imprisonment during which she delivered a baby girl, whom Pakistan was not willing to accept.

The NHRC notice to Home Secretary sought a report on the incident, Commission sources said.

A change in the river current altered her life forever. Shahnawaz, a resident of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), jumped into the river to kill herself, following an altercation with her in-laws.

She was arrested by security forces and handed over to the police who charged her with having entered India without a valid passport and visa; the report said adding that Shahnawaz was sentenced to one-year imprisonment in Poonch district jail.

Her ordeal did not end there as much to her woes, Shahnawaz was allegedly raped by a jail constable and became pregnant during her captivity, the report said.

PTI