MP: Back home from Pak after 22 years, Prahlad shares his ordeal

Prahlad Singh Rajput, who went missing from his home in Sagar district of Madhya Pradesh and was languishing in a Pakistani jail for years, is now back among his loved ones. ETV Bharat caught up with him to know about his ordeal.

Sagar (Madhya Pradesh): Prahlad Singh Rajput, who went missing from home 22 years ago and was languishing in a jail in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, for years, is now back home among his loved ones. When Prahlad reached Ghosipatti village under Gourjhamar police station in Sagar district, his happiness knew no bounds. He was 33 years old and mentally unstable when he had gone missing. Now 55, he remembers many things that happened to him all these years. But whenever the talk of the jail in Pakistan crops up, he bows his head. How did Prahlad reach Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) from a small village in Sagar district? How did he fall into the hands of the Pakistani army and how did he reach Rawalpindi Jail from PoK? Prahlad does not remember any of this. If he remembers at all, then it was the food available there and the incident when his head was broken in the name of torture, and that too he describes in incomplete sentences. It was under such circumstances that ETV Bharat reached Prahlad Singh Rajput's house and tried to know about his time in Pakistan after going missing from home till the time of his release.

A resident of Ghosipatti village under Gourjhamar police station area of ​​Sagar district, Prahlad Singh Rajput was mentally challenged since childhood and suddenly went missing from home when he was 33 years old. His family members tried hard for years to find him but to no avail. Their hopes were revived only in 2015 when a police team from Bhopal informed them that he had reached Pakistan after having gone missing. The family members then intensified their efforts for the return of Prahlad. In 2020, Sagar Suprintendent of Police Atul Singh helped them in their efforts and now, 22 years later, he is back among his loved ones.

After receiving a warm welcome on reaching his village, Prahlad interacted with people who knew him since his childhood. He recognised many of his childhood companions by name and asked them about their condition. He also remembered many things of his village.

However, whenever he is asked questions about his disappearance, his reaching PoK and being taken to jail in Rawalpindi, he lowers his head. How did he go missing and how did he reach PoK? He was at a loss for answers and even if he spoke, it was incomprehensible to the listener.

What happened to Prahlad when he was in Pakistan? Was he made to work in jail? How did he get food? Was he beaten? Of all these questions, he talked only about food and said that he used to get burnt rotis and food that made him sick. In the name of food, he said only lentils and roti were available. Suddenly he started talking about apples, but when asked if he got to eat these, he could only bow his head in response.

When he was asked whether he was beaten or tortured in the jail in Rawalpindi, Prahlad kept bowing his head but then suddenly said that his head was broken and he was given injections. He also spoke of taking revenge and how he would do it, a sign that he was subjected to a lot of torture.