India may put on hold group visas for Pakistani nationals in the wake of heightened tensions along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir, Press Trust of India (PTI) reported.
Visa on arrival for Pakistani senior citizens part of the new India-Pakistan
visa agreement was postponed by the Indian authorities hours before it was
due to take effect on Jan 15.
The two countries have agreed to offer group tourist visa facility for their
respective citizens from March 15 but it may now be put off as there is no
improvement in bilateral relations.
“The decision has to be taken at the highest level. We have no clarification
whether the group visa facility will start operating on March 15 although we
were preparing to launch it along with visas for Pakistani senior citizens,” a
senior Home Ministry official said.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said last Wednesday the killing of two Indian
soldiers in Kashmir in January “had cast a shadow on bilateral relations and
Pakistan should create a conducive environment to normalise the situation.”
“I am also yet to see any tangible progress in dismantling terror infrastructure
in Pakistan and bringing to justice perpetrators of the Mumbai terror attacks,”
he said.
If PM Raja Pervez Ashraf can go to India without any problem, fine. Let the people of both countries go to hell.
M. RAFIQUE ZAKARIA
Karachi
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