Indian arrested in Pak for holding Pakistani identity card

An Indian citizen who has been living in Pakistan since 1982 and embroiled in a family feud has been arrested here after he was found allegedly possessing a Pakistani National Identity Card, officials said today.

Rustam Sadhua was arrested yesterday by Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and is accused of obtaining his National Identity Card (NIC), issued only to Pakistani nationals, through fraudulent means.

He was arrested from a court in Islamabad after his pre-arrest bail was rejected and is being "probed", an FIA official said.

According to available evidence, Sadhua arrived in Pakistan from India in 1982 and since then has been living in the country, the official said.

Sadhua is the brother-in-law of Pakistan's influential minority lawmaker Asfandyar and son-in-law of well-known brewery tycoon late MP Bhandra.

Sources said that after the death of Bhandra, differences cropped up between his son Asfandyar and daughter who is married to Sadhua.

Asfandyar published several notices in the past against the couple for grabbing his ancestral property, accusing Sadhua of trying to usurp the property by using his influence over his wife.

The two families have also court cases against each other and Asfandyar has been trying to exploit Sadhua's Indian background.

Sadhua had filed an application for pre-arrest bail in the court of special judge central Malik Nazeer which was rejected, leading to his arrest.

Expressing satisfaction over the arrest, Asfandyar, who has been exploiting Sadhua's Indian background, said he had time and again complained about the suspect's conduct and had publicly dissociated himself from him.

"This man has defamed my late father and my family and I hope his other frauds also surface during investigation," Asfandyar was quoted as saying by the 'Dawn'.

Sadhua will be presented before the court again tomorrow to obtain a physical remand, but it may not be the end of the family feud.