As tensions escalate between India and Pakistan following the deadly terror attack in Pahalgam, Pakistani visitors in India are expressing deep sorrow over the violence while pleading for common people to be spared from its fallout. At the Attari-Wagah border on Saturday, Pakistani nationals rushed to return home after India announced the revocation of all visas issued to Pakistanis effective April 27.
Medical visas, however, remain valid until April 29. Many visitors, who had traveled to India to reunite with family or attend weddings, are now cutting their trips short under government orders. Among them was Baskari, a resident of Karachi, who had come to Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh for her niece’s wedding. Visibly upset, she said, “I came after 10 years but couldn’t even attend the ceremony.” Her husband, Mohammad Rasheed, who traveled with her on a 45-day visa issued on April 10, added, “Police came to our relatives’ home and asked us to leave immediately. It’s heartbreaking to leave on the day of the wedding. Peace should prevail between the two nations.”
Both expressed strong condemnation of the Pahalgam attack, which killed 26 people, most of them tourists. “Those behind this should be severely punished, but ordinary people should not suffer. Terrorists have no religion. Common people on both sides love each other,” Rasheed said.
Other Pakistani nationals echoed similar sentiments. Bali Ram from Ghotki, Pakistan, who was visiting his daughters in Raipur, said his visit was abruptly cut short. Another visitor, Daulat from Karachi, had been attending a wedding in Jodhpur. “Whatever happened is not right. This should never happen,” she said as she made her way to the border.
Muzammil, another Pakistani returning home, condemned the attack, saying, “Those responsible should be hanged.” An elderly man from Rawalpindi who had traveled to Lucknow for a family wedding also lamented having to leave before completing his visit.
Indian authorities have moved swiftly to enforce the exit of Pakistani nationals. On Friday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah directed state governments to ensure that no Pakistani national overstays beyond the set deadline. Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan later reinforced the instructions during a video conference with state chief secretaries.
As of Saturday, 229 Pakistani nationals have crossed back into Pakistan through the Attari-Wagah land route. Simultaneously, 392 Indian nationals who had been visiting Pakistan have also returned to India, officials confirmed.
Relations between India and Pakistan, already strained, have sharply deteriorated following the Pahalgam attack. New Delhi’s retaliatory measures, including the cancellation of visas, have been met with counteractions from Islamabad, signaling another tense chapter in the two countries’ fraught relationship.