Wednesday, September 7 2005 09:43 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Islamabad: A key witness in the 1990 Lahore bomb blast case, in which Sarabjit Singh has been condemned to death by a Pakistani Court, has claimed that he has been threatened for having said that the Indian was innocent.

He asked the Pakistani Government to give him protection and that he will then speak the truth.

Salim Shaukat, who had earlier told news channels that he had been tutored to accuse Sarabjit of being involved in a blast in Lahore 15 years ago, yesterday (Sept 6, 2005) said that he had been threatened by two persons while he was returning home.

"I was coming home from my shop when two people approached me and asked my name and then told me not to give interviews and say that Sarabjit is innocent," he told 'Star News' from Lahore.

"Give me protection and I promise to speak the truth," he said.

Shaukat had earlier said that he had been forced to give a testimony against Sarabjit. "I am not sure if he is responsible for the blasts. I was asked to say that I had seen him. But I had not seen him as I had fainted at the time of the incident. I was helpless as I was under the influence of law enforcement agencies."

His father was one of the victims in the 1990 Lahore bombing.