Chandigarh, Dec. 17: Sarabjit Singh, a death-row convict in a Lahore jail, will be released on January 11, his sister, Dalbir Kaur, has claimed.

“My brother, languishing for over 16 years for no fault of his, will be coming home next month,” Dalbir told The Telegraph on phone from her home at Bikhiwind, not far from Amritsar.

Dalbir said the Centre had “informed” her a month ago of the efforts to secure the expected release, which would coincide with Id-ul-Zoha. The family has been distributing sweets for the past two days.

“When Pakistan foreign minister Khursheed Mehmood Kasuri asked me to apply for a visa, I realised something had begun moving. When I met foreign minister Pranab Mukherjee, I was told the process had been set in motion and the date decided, but he asked me to keep it a secret. It would have remained so had a leading newspaper in Pakistan not revealed it on Friday. I knew the tentative date but had to keep mum,” Dalbir said.

Last week, Dalbir left the BJP, of which she was a district secretary, to join the Congress. “My decision stems from the efforts made by party president Sonia Gandhi to secure Sarabjit’s release. I am told Pakistan wants to free him as a goodwill gesture before the Prime Minister or Pranab Mukherjee’s visit.” Dalbir said she would also visit Pakistan to “thank” President Pervez Musharraf.

Sarabjit was charged with spying for RAW, but Dalbir says he “strayed into Pakistan” on August 28, 1990, after getting drunk. He is alleged to have carried out blasts in Lahore and Multan.