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The Hindu
10-07-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
J&K High Court seeks MHA response on long-term visa status of deported Pakistan woman
The Jammu and Kashmir High Court on Thursday (July 10, 2025) sought a response from the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) regarding the status of the long-term visa (LTV) application of a 62-year-old housewife who was deported to Pakistan following the Pahalgam terror attack. The petitioner Rakshanda Rashid, a Pakistani citizen married to an Indian, had lived in Jammu for 38 years on an LTV, which was annually renewed. She had applied for citizenship in 1996 but the request has yet to be processed and at the time of deportation, her LTV application was pending with the Ministry. Also read: Home Ministry appeals against J&K High Court order to repatriate woman deported to Pakistan A Division Bench of Chief Justice Arun Palli and Justice Rajnesh Oswal orally asked the Ministry to furnish the reply on July 17, the next date of hearing. The matter could not be argued on Thursday (July 10, 2025), as Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta, who was to appear on behalf of the Ministry, was busy in another case in the Supreme Court. The petitioner's counsel Ankur Sharma said they hoped a solution within the legal framework. Also read: Bring back woman deported to Pakistan: J&K High Court 'The case could not be argued, but during oral discussion, we conveyed to the court that we want a solution and do not want to take an adversarial position against the government,' said Mr. Sharma. On June 29, the MHA had appealed against a June 6 order by Justice Rahul Bharti, who directed the Union Home Secretary to bring back the petitioner from Pakistan in 10 days. The Ministry said the 'judiciary should not override' the executive's decision to deport a foreign national, adding that the High Court order was constitutionally impermissible and unsustainable, as it directed the enforcement of a judicial writ beyond the sovereign territory of India in Pakistan, where she was deported to, and was thus ultra vires. The Ministry also said that the court's direction was 'legally unenforceable and diplomatically untenable'. Also read | Cause and effect: On human rights, citizenship cases After the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 people were killed, the Ministry cancelled the visas of all Pakistani citizens and asked them to leave the country by April 29. The order exempted those with LTVs or Pakistani women married to Indian citizens. The woman was deported despite the Ministry's guidelines stating that Muslim women who are married to Indian citizens and have applied for LTVs are not required to leave the country. Ms. Rashid's daughter Fatima Sheikh had told The Hindu earlier that her mother was taken to the Attari border in Punjab by the Jammu and Kashmir Police and expelled from the country on April 28. She said her mother had applied for an LTV extension in January, yet the leave-India notice served by the police said the application was made on March 8. She said she got emails on April 26 and May 9 from the Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO) that the LTV application was 'under process' and awaiting approval from higher authorities. Ms. Sheikh said her mother had no immediate relatives in Pakistan and was living alone in a hotel with little money.
Indian Express
10-06-2025
- Indian Express
Pak man kills wife, dies by suicide in Kharghar, couple moved to India a few months ago: Police
A 45-year-old Pakistani national allegedly killed his 34-year-old wife and died by suicide in Kharghar area of Navi Mumbai on Monday, police said. The exact reason behind the crime is not known, but preliminary inquiry with the relatives revealed that the couple was struggling financially and were preparing to go back to Pakistan. According to police sources, Notan Das alias Sanjay Sachdev and his wife Sapna Notandas, both Pakistani nationals, had moved to India along with their two children aged 10 and 6 years, a few months ago on a long-term visa. However, police said, the couple allegedly started fighting recently over domestic disputes involving a financial crisis. Sapna's sister, who is an Indian national, was helping them financially. According to the Kharghar police, on Monday morning, when the younger child of the couple returned from the school — his elder sibling was still in school — he found the door of their flat in Kharghar sector-34 building locked from inside. He then called his neighbors, who informed Sapna's sister. After the sister reached the flat and got it opened with the help of the police, they found the couple lying in a pool of blood. Sachdev, who was still breathing, was rushed to a nearby hospital, where he succumbed to injuries, a police officer said. The postmortem examination indicated that Sachdev might have attacked Sapna with a knife on her neck, back and shoulder, and later, using the same weapon, he stabbed in his neck, another officer from a Kharghar police station said. Sapna's sister told police that her sister and brother-in-law were struggling financially and that could be a reason behind the incident. Police have registered a case under section 103(1) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS) against Sachdev and are further recording statements of their friends and relatives. After the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, the External Affairs Ministry had suspended visas of all Pakistani nationals, excluding the Long Stay Visas (LTVs) issued to Hindus from Pakistan.
NDTV
10-06-2025
- NDTV
Pak Man Stabs Wife To Death In Flat Near Mumbai Before Killing Self
Navi Mumbai: A 45-year-old Pakistani national allegedly fatally stabbed his 35-year-old wife, also a Pakistani, using a kitchen knife in their rented flat in Kharghar node of Navi Mumbai before killing himself over a domestic dispute, police said on Tuesday. The Pakistani couple, identified as Notandas alias Sanjay Sachdev and his wife Sapna Notandas, were on long-term visas to India, a police officer said. Deputy Commissioner of Police Prashant Mohite said the couple was found lying in pools of blood in their rented flat on Monday. "The sister of the woman visited the flat on Monday as Sapna Notandas was not responding to her calls, leading to the discovery of the crime," said Mohite. He said doctors declared Sapna Notandas dead at the scene, while her husband succumbed to his injuries during treatment. The preliminary investigation suggests that Notandas attacked his wife with a sharp kitchen knife following a fight, stabbing her multiple times on the neck, back, and shoulder, leading to her death. "Subsequently, Notandas used the same weapon to stab himself in the neck, which resulted in his own death," the police officer said. He said Sapna Notandas and her husband were originally Pakistani citizens. "Our records show they arrived in India in November 2024 on a long-term visit visa. The couple had been residing in the flat with their two children for the past six months. We are currently conducting a thorough verification of their visas and other identity documents as part of the ongoing investigation," Mohite added. Police have registered a case under section 103(1) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS). In the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, the Central government issued 'leave India' notices to Pakistani nationals holding short-term visas covering 12 categories. The External Affairs Ministry had stated that the decision to suspend visas of Pakistani nationals wouldn't affect the validity of the Long Stay Visas (LTVs) issued to Hindu Pakistani nationals earlier. Mohite said a major concern for the police administration is the welfare and future of the two young children left behind by the couple. "We are trying to find out who will take care of them." (Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
News18
10-06-2025
- News18
Pakistani National Stabs Wife To Death In Mumbai Over Domestic Dispute, Dies By Suicide
Last Updated: The couple, identified as Notandas alias Sanjay Sachdev and his wife Sapna Notandas, were residing in India on long-term visas A Pakistani national allegedly stabbed his wife to death in their rented flat in Kharghar, Navi Mumbai, before taking his own life following a domestic dispute. According to the police, the couple, identified as Notandas alias Sanjay Sachdev, 45, and his wife Sapna Notandas, 35, were residing in India on long-term visas. Speaking to the media on Tuesday about the murder-suicide case, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Prashant Mohite said that the couple was found lying in pools of blood in their rented flat on Monday. 'The sister of the deceased woman visited the flat on Monday as Sapna Notandas was not responding to her calls, leading to the discovery of the crime," said Mohite. DCP Mohite revealed that the wife was pronounced dead at the hospital, while her husband died from his injuries during treatment. Preliminary investigations suggest that the husband attacked his wife with a sharp kitchen knife after a quarrel, stabbing her multiple times in the neck, back, and shoulder, which led to her death. 'Subsequently, Notandas used the same weapon to stab himself in the neck, which resulted in his own death," the police officer added. He mentioned that Sapna Notandas and her husband were originally Pakistani citizens. 'Our records show they arrived in India in November 2024 on a long-term visit visa. The couple had been residing in the flat with their two children for the past six months. We are currently conducting a thorough verification of their visas and other identity documents as part of the ongoing investigation," Mohite stated. Police have registered a case under section 103(1) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS). In the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack, the External Affairs Ministry had stated that the decision to suspend visas of Pakistani nationals won't affect the validity of the Long Stay Visas (LTVs) issued to Hindu Pakistani nationals earlier. First Published: June 10, 2025, 19:39 IST
Hindustan Times
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Pakistani nationals on long-term visas asked to reapply by July 10
New Delhi: All Pakistani nationals, including Hindus, currently in India on long-term visas (LTVs) but who have not been granted Indian citizenship yet will have to apply afresh for the visa before July 10 or face cancellation, the Union home ministry said in an order dated April 28. Border Security Force stand guard at Attari-Wagah Integrated Check Post (ICP) in Amritsar. (HT PHOTO) That order essentially scrapped an exemption made on April 25 for Pakistani Hindus on LTVs, even as India said all other Pakistani citizens in India must leave the country by April 29. HT has seen a copy of the April 28 order that said: 'In exercise of the powers under section 3 (1) of the foreigners' act, 1946, and in continuation of this ministry's order dated April 25, it is stated that the long-term visa holders had been given exemption from revocation of their visas. Now, the government has decided that all such Pakistani nationals holding a long-term visa and who have not obtained an Indian citizenship, shall be required to apply afresh on the e-FRRO portal...' The application form for reapplying for LTV, the ministry said, will be available on the portal with effect from May 10, and till July 10. 'The LTV of any Pakistani national, who fails to reapply in the said period, shall be cancelled,' the order added. For reapplying for the LTV, the Pakistani citizens will have to provide documents including copy of their current valid LTV certificate, latest address with a copy of proof, details of profession/occupation and religion , and in the case of those who have applied for Indian citizenship, a copy of the application as well as latest photograph. The government has asked to reapply to make sure it has proper records of all who have LTVs (Pakistani Hindus and who are already here on LTV). Earlier, while announcing a series of measures in response to April 22 Pahalgam attack, in which 26 people were killed by Pakistan sponsored terrorists, the government asked all Pakistani nationals to return to their country. Union home minister Amit Shah also called up the chief ministers of all states and asked them to ensure that no Pakistani stays in India beyond the deadline set for leaving the country. Through its April 25 order, MHA suspended 14 visa categories out of 16 for Pakistanis. Only diplomatic/official visas and LTVs were allowed beyond April 29. The revoked visa categories included –– SAARC, visa on arrival, business, film, journalist, transit, medical (deadline ended on April 29), conference, mountaineering, student, visitor visa, group tourist visa, pilgrim visa and group pilgrim visa to minorities of Pakistan. However, the ministry of external affairs clarified that Pakistani Hindus with LTVs will be exempted. That has now changed. 'The latest order now nullifies this, which means everyone has to reapply for the LTV,' said an officer. 953 Pakistani citizens left India via Attari-Wagah border till May 2 while 1,841 Indians returned from Pakistan as tensions grow between the two countries. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has vowed to pursue the perpetrators and those part of the conspiracy to the ends of the Earth t, keeping Islamabad on the edge. Among a series of steps taken so far, the government has downgraded diplomatic ties with Pakistan, suspended the Indus Water Treaty (IWT), closed airspace for Pakistani airlines, snapped trade ties, and banned several Pakistani social media handles and websites.
