'Welcome home, India's daughter'

An Indian woman who said she was forced to marry a Pakistani at gunpoint returned to India yesterday after a court ordered her release.

Uzma Ahmad was reunited with her family at the Wagah border crossing near Amritsar.

The case became a new national cause against arch-rival Pakistan with Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj calling Ahmad "India's daughter" in a Twitter statement to greet news of the release.

"Welcome home India's daughter. I am sorry for all that you have gone through," Swaraj tweeted.

Ahmad, who is in her early 20s, met Pakistani Tahir Ali in Malaysia, according to Indian media.

She told the Islamabad high court that Ali forced her to marry him at gunpoint on May 3 when she was visiting Pakistan.

Ahmad has made headlines in India since making her plea to the court on May 12 to be allowed to return.

The case came amid renewed tensions between India and Pakistan over the disputed Kashmir region and an Indian national, Kulbhushan Jadhav, who Pakistan has sentenced to death on spying charges.