Thursday, August 25 2005 09:50 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: Janata Dal - United (JD-U) President George Fernandes yesterday (August 24, 2005) met Pakistan High Commissioner Aziz Ahmed Khan with an appeal to his Government to consider the matter of Sarabjit Singh, the Indian national sentenced to death in that country, on humanitarian grounds.

Fernandes, who was accompanied by party leader Shambhu Srivastwa, handed over a memorandum to the Pakistan envoy, in which he said Singh was an innocent person, "A poor farm-hand who had mistakenly strayed into Pakistan in 1990 and has been languishing in Pakistan jails ever since."

"Sarabjit Singh is a poor young man with even a younger family, including two unmarried daughters and his execution will destroy the lives of his family members," he said in the memorandum.

The High Commissioner assured Fernandes that all possible legal procedures and safeguards were open to Singh, like filing of a review petition before the Supreme Court of Pakistan and also a mercy petition to President Pervez Musharraf, JD(U) said in a statement.

The delegation was assured its appeal would be conveyed to the Pakistan President immediately for his consideration, the statement said.