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LIVE: Medical checkup underway, IAF pilot Abhinandan set to cross Wagah border shortly
Indian Air Force (IAF) pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman reached the Pakistani side of the border on Friday evening from Lahore ahead of his release from Pakistani captivity.
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New Delhi
Indian Air Force Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman left for the Wagah Border from here on Friday to be handed over to India, two days after he was captured by Pakistani authorities.
The Indian Air Force (IAF) pilot left Lahore in a convoy comprising vehicles of the Pakistani government officials, according to Dawn newspaper.
UPDATE: Indian High Commission delegation reaches Wagah. Informed sources said that Abhinandan was accompanied by Indian High Commission officials from Islamabad. He will enter India after completing formalities at Wagah, IANS reported.
CNN-News18Â reports that the handover procedure has been completed at the Pakistan side of the border.
Abhinandan's medical checkup is being done right now at the Pakistan side of the Wagah border. The Pakistani officials will hand over him to the Indian officials at the Attari-Wagah Border crossing here.
Mamata Banerjee welcomes Abhinandan home
West Bengal chief minister has tweeted "Welcome home #AbhinandanVarthaman Welcome home sweet home"
Retreat ceremony cancelled
The daily Retreat ceremony held at the Attari-Wagah border front along the India-Pakistan border in Punjab was cancelled for Friday in view of IAF Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman's release by Pakistan at this frontier, the BSF said.
Hundreds of people had flocked the Attari border since early Friday morning to catch a glimpse of Abhinandan. A senior official of the force said the martial ceremony was called off due to administrative requirements.
UPDATE: Sources speaking to ABP News have informed that Pakistan has not cancelled the rite from its end. It also said the Commander will be formally handed over to India after the Beating Retreat ceremony
The Border Security Force (BSF) conducts the ceremony in coordination with their cross-border counterparts Pak Rangers. It involves lowering of the flags of the two countries along with foot stomping manoeuvres of the troops.
Senior officers of the BSF have already reached the border front to ensure that the handing over procedure of the IAF pilot is conducted smoothly and a general directive has been issued to all the security units of the force to remain alert.
Pakistan court dismisses plea to stop the release of IAF pilot
A Pakistani citizen had filed the petition in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) to stop the imminent release of Varthaman, saying he committed crime against the country and should be put on trial. The Islamabad High Court on Friday dismissed the plea to stop the imminent release of the captured Indian Air Force pilot Wing Commander Abhinanadan Varthaman.
Abhinandan was captured by the Pakistan Army after his fighter jet crashed in an air duel with a Pakistani F-16. He shot down the plane before his own went down, forcing him to eject. He fell into Pakistani territory.
On Thursday, Khan announced that the IAF pilot would be released as a "gesture of peace".
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