Expelled for spying, Pakistan mission staffers leave

ATTARI: Two staff members from the Pakistan high commission — Abid Hussain (42) and Mohammad Tahir (44) — who were declared persona non grata and

expelled

from India on espionage charges, crossed over to Pakistan via

Attari

land border on late Monday night.

They were apprehended red-handed while trying to exchange stolen classified documents and found to be directly linked to the ISI, along with a driver, Javed Hussain.

More than 10 persons, including the families of these

spies

and a diplomat of Pakistan high commission, crossed the border to Pakistan. Sources said vehicles from Pakistan had arrived near the international border to ferry them home.

As is the norm now, due to Covis-19 pandemic, they were medically screened by health teams at the integrated check post in Attari.

The last time a Pakistani diplomatic staffer was expelled was in 2016. “The government has declared both these officials persona non grata for indulging in activities incompatible with their status as members of a diplomatic mission and asked them to leave,” the foreign ministry said.