SRINAGAR: As tensions between India and Pakistan escalate following the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people, multiple Pakistani-origin individuals and families living in Jammu and Kashmir are facing deportation, with courts stepping in to provide temporary reprieve.
In one case, the Supreme Court restrained the Centre from taking coercive action against six family members from Srinagar and Bengaluru, including petitioner Ahmed Tarek Butt, after they claimed they held valid Indian documents such as passports and Aadhaar numbers. The court asked authorities to verify their identity documents and permitted the family to approach the Jammu and Kashmir High Court if aggrieved by the outcome of the verification process. The Bench clarified that its order should not be treated as a precedent but directed that no deportation action be taken until verification is completed.
In separate cases, three families were granted relief from deportation by various courts. Among them is Sariya Kauser, a woman married in Poonch in 1984 who has lived in India for four decades and whose three children are also settled and married here. She was taken to Amritsar for deportation but brought back following a last-minute court order. Minal Khan, a Pakistani national, recently married online to a CRPF constable from Jammu, was also spared deportation after her plea was heard by the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. However, the constable now faces likely disciplinary proceedings for marrying a foreign national without prior clearance. The Central Reserve Police Force is investigating the matter amid broader national security concerns.
Another case involves nine siblings born in Pakistan, including Iftikhar Ali, a constable in the Jammu and Kashmir Police. Their family returned to Mendhar’s Salwa village from Pakistan in 1983. Though Iftikhar was previously dismissed over his nationality, he was reinstated by court order, though denied promotion. All three families remain anxious despite the court relief, with relatives questioning how decades-old residents are suddenly being classified as threats.
The government’s stance hardened after the April 22 terror attack at Baisaran in Pahalgam, which targeted tourists. On April 25, the Centre revoked all existing visas issued to Pakistani nationals, except medical visas, which remained valid until April 29. All Pakistani nationals were instructed to leave India before their visa expiry. The Wagah-Attari border, initially ordered shut from April 30, was later kept open for returnees until further orders.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has granted the Jammu and Kashmir administration six more weeks to provide data on Pakistani nationals detained under the Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act, 1978. The authorities informed the court that relevant data was lost in past floods. The petition, originally filed by the late Bhim Singh, seeks the release and repatriation of Pakistani citizens who have completed their jail terms but remain incarcerated.
