Pakistan&#39;s High Commissioner to India Sohail Mahmood will not be returning to New Delhi anytime soon, an official from the Pakistan Foreign Office was quoted saying on Friday.&nbsp;

Officials from the Foreign Office said that Islamabad has decided not to send High Commissioner Mahmood back to New Delhi until the overall situation regarding treatment of diplomatic staff and their families is resolved.

&quot;Our high commissioner will not return to India anytime soon,&quot; the senior Foreign Office official was quoted by the Express Tribune, as saying just hours after Mahmood returned from New Delhi on Friday.

The official told the daily that the high commissioner would stay back for an indefinite period.&nbsp;

Initially, it was thought that he would return to New Delhi after consultations with relevant authorities on the continued harassment and bullying of Pakistani diplomatic staff and their families, including children by Indian secret agencies.

Pakistan called back its High Commissioner in Delhi for a meeting after alleging that its diplomats and their families were &quot;harassed and intimidated&quot; in the capital. Islamabad said in a statement that it had called envoy Sohail Mahmood for &quot;consultations&quot; after &quot;no positive action had been taken by India&quot;.

Pakistan had lodged a strong protest with both the Indian high commission in Islamabad as well as External Affairs Ministry in New Delhi.

The Indian government downplayed the move, calling it &quot;routine&quot;. &quot;He has been called back for consultation.&nbsp;

It may be recalled that in 2002, high commissioners of Pakistan and India were recalled to their respective countries following the December 13, 2001 terror attack on the Indian parliament.

Tensions between both countries are already running high because of frequent cease-fire violations along the Line of Control (LoC) and the Working International Boundary.

The official told the daily that the high commissioner would stay back for an indefinite period

Pakistan's High Commissioner to India Sohail Mahmood will not be returning to New Delhi anytime soon, an official from the Pakistan Foreign Office was quoted saying on Friday. Officials from the Foreign Office said that Islamabad has decided not to send High Commissioner Mahmood back to New Delhi until the overall situation regarding treatment of diplomatic staff and their families is resolved. "Our high commissioner will not return to India anytime soon," the senior Foreign Office official was quoted by the Express Tribune, as saying just hours after Mahmood returned from New Delhi on Friday. The official told the daily that the high commissioner would stay back for an indefinite period. Initially, it was thought that he would return to New Delhi after consultations with relevant authorities on the continued harassment and bullying of Pakistani diplomatic staff and their families, including children by Indian secret agencies. Pakistan called back its High Commissioner in Delhi for a meeting after alleging that its diplomats and their families were "harassed and intimidated" in the capital. Islamabad said in a statement that it had called envoy Sohail Mahmood for "consultations" after "no positive action had been taken by India". Pakistan had lodged a strong protest with both the Indian high commission in Islamabad as well as External Affairs Ministry in New Delhi. The Indian government downplayed the move, calling it "routine". "He has been called back for consultation. It may be recalled that in 2002, high commissioners of Pakistan and India were recalled to their respective countries following the December 13, 2001 terror attack on the Indian parliament. Tensions between both countries are already running high because of frequent cease-fire violations along the Line of Control (LoC) and the Working International Boundary.

Pakistan refuses to send envoy back to India

An Indian court today sentenced a Bollywood director to seven years in jail for raping an American research scholar last year, the victim&#39;s lawyer said. 
 
Mahmood Farooqui, best known for co-directing the popular 2010 satire Peepli Live on farmer suicides, was convicted on Saturday after a fast-track court in New Delhi found him guilty of the March 2015 attack. 
 
The victim, then aged 35, had travelled to India to seek Farooqui&#39;s assistance with her research when the assault took place at his home in an upscale area of the capital.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;The court sentenced him to seven years (of imprisonment), which is the minimum jail term for this offence,&quot; the victim&#39;s lawyer, Vrinda Grover, told AFP. 
 
Grover, who had argued for the maximum term of life imprisonment, said the court had also imposed a 50,000 Rupee ($747) fine. 
 
Farooqui, who pleaded not guilty, was taken into custody at the weekend. 
 
The woman returned to the US shortly after the incident but came back to report the matter to police. 
 
&quot;Peepli Live&quot;, which explores the divide between urban and rural India, was produced by Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan. 
 
Farooqui co-directed it with his wife, Anusha Rizwi. 
 
India introduced tough laws against sex offenders in the wake of the fatal gang-rape of a Delhi student in the capital in December 2012 that sparked mass street protests. 
 
But high levels of sexual violence against women continue. 
 
(AFP)

The victim had travelled to India to seek Mahmood Farooqui's assistance with her research when he assaulted her at his home

An Indian court today sentenced a Bollywood director to seven years in jail for raping an American research scholar last year, the victim's lawyer said. Mahmood Farooqui, best known for co-directing the popular 2010 satire Peepli Live on farmer suicides, was convicted on Saturday after a fast-track court in New Delhi found him guilty of the March 2015 attack. The victim, then aged 35, had travelled to India to seek Farooqui's assistance with her research when the assault took place at his home in an upscale area of the capital. "The court sentenced him to seven years (of imprisonment), which is the minimum jail term for this offence," the victim's lawyer, Vrinda Grover, told AFP. Grover, who had argued for the maximum term of life imprisonment, said the court had also imposed a 50,000 Rupee ($747) fine. Farooqui, who pleaded not guilty, was taken into custody at the weekend. The woman returned to the US shortly after the incident but came back to report the matter to police. "Peepli Live", which explores the divide between urban and rural India, was produced by Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan. Farooqui co-directed it with his wife, Anusha Rizwi. India introduced tough laws against sex offenders in the wake of the fatal gang-rape of a Delhi student in the capital in December 2012 that sparked mass street protests. But high levels of sexual violence against women continue. (AFP)

India court jails 'Peepli Live' director for 7 years over rape

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