In a big relief for Pakistani scientist Dr Khalil Chishti, the Supreme Court of India announced his release on Wednesday. The apex court has said that the punishment given to him will be considered undergone. He had challenged the life imprisonment given to him for a murder in Rajasthan in 1992. An apex court bench of Justice P Sathasivam and Justice Ranjan Gogoi had heard Chishti's appeal.

The court has directed authorities to return all documents, including passport to Chisti, who is free to return to Pakistan without any restriction. The 81-year-old virologist had been placed under house arrest for 18 years before conviction. In 2011, the Rajasthan High Court upheld his life imprisonment sentence. He had challenged the life imprisonment given to him for a murder in Rajasthan in 1992.

Copyright News Network International, 2012