Indian Clerics Who Went Missing in Pakistan Reaches Delhi

New Delhi: Two clerics, including the head priest of Delhi's Hazrat Nizamuddin Dargah, who went missing in Pakistan, reached New Delhi on Monday morning.

Speaking to CNN-News18 over telephone, Nazim Ali Nizami said, "We went there to spread the message of Sufism. The Indian government came out strongly to help us. We also thank the media for helping us. There was no network in many places where we went."

"First and foremost I thank Allah. I thank Sushma ji and Rajnath ji. I would also like to thank the Pakistan government who ended the confusion," he added.

However, they didn't reveal much about their missing mystery in Pakistan.

The two clerics - Syed Asif Nizami, the head priest (Sajjadanashin) of Hazrat Nizamuddin Aulia Dargah, and his nephew Nazim Ali Nizami, had gone to Lahore on March 8 and were to return to India on March 20. The main purpose of the visit of 80-year-old Asif to Pakistan was to see his sister in Karachi.

On Sunday, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj tweeted, "I just spoke to Syed Nazim Ali Nizami in Karachi. He told me that they are safe and will be back in Delhi tomorrow."

Both of them are likely to meet Swaraj today after their arrival in the national capital. The Indian agencies are also planning to meet them to know certain facts after they went missing in Pakistan.

Yesterday, Pakistan had conveyed to India that the clerics were traced and reached Karachi last evening.

Swaraj had taken up the issue with Pakistan Prime Minister's Adviser on Foreign Affairs, Sartaj Aziz yesterday and requested him to trace the missing clerics.

According to Pakistani media reports, both clerics had been in "interior Sindh where there was no communication network" and that is why they could not inform their relatives about their whereabouts.

Earlier, Pakistani sources had said the two clerics were in the custody of Pakistan's intelligence agency over their alleged links with the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM).

They were offloaded from Karachi-bound Shaheen Airlines on March 14 at the Allama Iqbal International Airport, Lahore, the Pakistani sources had said.

A senior Pakistani police official said the two clerics were being questioned on their exact whereabouts since March 15 when they went missing.

(PTI inputs)