New Delhi:
Indian Air Force (IAF) pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman, who was in Pakistan’s captivity after he ejected from his plane when it took a hit on February 27, was asked questions about how he shot F-16 fighter jet. According to reports, Pakistani forces grilled him about the India-Pak aerial dogfight in which a jet of the Pakistan Air Force was shot down.
According to reports, Pakistani forces also tried to extract crucial information on Indian troop deployment, high-security radio frequencies and sensitive logistics during the first 24 hours of his captivity.
The official, who is part of a team debriefing of 35-year-old fighter pilot after he walked back into India across the Wagah border on March 1, said the Wing Commander was deprived of sleep, choked and even beaten up by his captors in Pakistan, according to a Hindustan Times report.
All fighter pilots in India are taught to hold back for as long as possible when captured so that transmitting frequencies and deployments can be changed in the first 24 hours to deny the adversary any advantage, the officer said. “Wing Commander Abhinandan did exactly that,” the officer said.
The Print quoted top sources in the security and defence establishment as saying that Varthaman was subjected to bright lights, loud music to keep him disoriented and break him down. The report came close on the heels of Varthaman’s earlier statement in which he had reportedly told Indian officials that Pakistani authorities did not physically torture him in his nearly 60-hour stay in their custody, but he was subjected to considerable ''mental harassment".
MRI reports of Varthaman have revealed that the fighter pilot suffered spinal injury as he ejected from his plane after it was shot down. The officer is undergoing more check-ups and treatment at the Research and Referral Hospital in Delhi Cantonment. Medical reports also revealed that Pakistan had not planted any bug in Varthaman's body.
