Hamid Nihal Ansari returns home: His mother cried, hugged him, he consoled her

It was an emotional moment for the Ansari family when the parents hugged their son soon after he crossed the Attari-Wagah border and walked onto Indian territory.

Indian national Hamid Nihal Ansari, who crossed back over into India on Tuesday, said a prayer with his family, and hugged his mother as soon as he stepped foot on Indian territory. 
 
The 33-year-old could be seen consoling his mother, Fauzia, who was unable to fight back tears and kept hugging and kissing her son who was being reunited with the family after six years. 

Earlier in the day, Ansari's mother had told reporters that the prayers of the family and of all those who wished for his safe return had been answered. She stated that she didn't have words to describe her feelings.

"I am immensely happy today. I don't have words to describe my feelings."

His father, Nihal Ansari, said, "It is a new dawn for us".

Hamid Ansari was received by Indian officials at the Attari-Wagah route and crossed over into Indian territory after the conclusion of the beating-retreat ceremony. He crossed over to India on the basis of emergency travel certificate issued by the Indian High Commission in Islamabad.

Ansari, a software engineer from Mumbai, had spent around six years in a Pakistan jail. He was arrested in 2012 for illegally entering Pakistan from Afghanistan, reportedly to meet a girl he had befriended online.

Ansari was first sentenced to three years' imprisonment by a military court in 2015 for possessing a fake Pakistani identity card. The Mumbai resident's term ended on December 15, but he was not able to leave for India as his legal documents were not ready, news agency PTI reported.  

Ansari was taken for his medical checkup immediately after his return. The Peshawar High Court, last Thursday, had given the Pakistan government a month's deadline to complete his repatriation process.

The Ministry of External Affairs on Monday termed it an event of "great relief" after learning about Ansari's release for Pak jail. 

"It's a matter of great relief, especially for family members, that 6 yrs of incarceration is coming to an end. We would like Pakistan to take action to also end the misery of other Indian nationals and fishermen whose nationality has been confirmed and who've completed their sentences, but continue to languish in Pakistan jails." the MEA stated. 

"We hope Pakistan would respond and organize an early visit of Joint Judicial Committee so that issues of prisoners can be dealt with in a humanitarian and timely manner," the MEA added.