June 14, 2008	Saturday	Jamadi-us-Sani 09, 1429

MAHAL (India), June 13: Balbir Singh says he thought he was serving his country and would be hailed as a hero when he became an Indian spy.

But now he’s fighting in Indian courts to make legal history and win compensation for 10 years spent in a Pakistani jail after being caught and convicted.

Balbir Singh is among several dozen former ‘secret agents’ or informers who have launched similar court cases against the Indian government demanding payouts ranging from 500,000 to 800,000 Indian rupees.

“I’d have been happy to die in a Pakistan jail. At least I’d have died a martyr,” said Singh, 58, the father of two teenagers.

Around 100 former ‘spies’ live in three districts of northern Punjab state bordering Pakistan, according to rights activists.

Their hopes for recognition and compensation have been spurred in recent months after two cases involving Indian prisoners in Pakistani jails put the spotlight on former secret agents.

In March, Kashmir Singh, who spent 35 years on death row in Pakistan after being convicted of espionage, was pardoned by the Pakistani government and returned home to a hero’s welcome. He confirmed he had been a spy.

Last month, the hanging of another prisoner, Sarabjit Singh, over a 1990 bombing in Lahore that killed four people was postponed indefinitely by Pakistan.

“Spying is an endless game. It goes on uninterrupted, even when the situation is normal,” said Maloy Krishna Dhar, a former joint director of India’ intelligence bureau.

The men in Punjab’s border areas are hired through word of mouth. Some, such as Balbir Singh, seek out intelligence officials to get hired, lawyers say.

Other former spies are in the process of launching cases.

One is Mohinder Singh, 61, whose bitterness is evident in his face as he talks about his days in a Pakistani jail. “There it was just confinement, but what we face here is injustice,” said Mohinder, sentenced to seven years in a Pakistani jail.—AFP