Attari: Pakistani citizens in India were seen queuing up at the Attari border point on Sunday morning as the Central government ordered them to leave the country following the terrorist attack in Pahalgam. The border witnessed emotional scenes as Pakistanis bid adieu to their relatives and family members in India.

"My mother is an Indian and she is not being allowed to accompany us to Pakistan," said Sarita, not knowing when she would see her again in person. According to a PTI report, Sarita, her brother, and her father were among the hundreds queued up at the Attari border point to leave India.

The exit deadline for Pakistani nationals visiting India on SAARC visas ended on April 26, while for the rest — except those on medical visas — it is set to close on Sunday, April 27, amid escalating tensions between the two countries over the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people.

Medical visas issued to Pakistani nationals are valid until April 29.

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At the Attari border in Amritsar district, vehicles queued up as Pakistani nationals rushed to cross over to their country. Many Indians came to see off their Pakistani relatives at Attari, and the pain of separation was palpable.

Sarita's family had come to India for a relative's wedding set for April 29. "We came to India after nine years," she said.

She, her brother, and her father are Pakistanis, while her mother is an Indian. "They (the authorities at Attari) are telling us they will not allow my mother to go along. My parents got married in 1991. They are saying Indian passport holders will not be allowed," she said, crying bitterly.

Most of the Pakistani nationals told PTI that they had come to meet their relatives in India. Some were here to attend weddings but now have to rush home without participating.

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A man from Jaisalmer told PTI that his maternal uncle, aunt, and their children were visiting after 36 years but had to rush back following the Centre’s directive.

"They came from Pakistan's Amarkot on April 15 with a 45-day visa. No one knew the situation would turn out like this. They did not get time to meet all their relatives," he said.

India has warned that those who fail to exit the country after the deadline passes will face legal action under the newly enacted Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025. Union Minister Amit Shah directed all states and union territories to ensure that no Pakistani citizen is residing in the country after the deadline.

The Bihar government said that 19 Pakistanis on tourist and visit visas left the state on April 25. Maharashtra minister Yogesh Kadam said that 5,000 Pakistanis reside in the state, among whom 1,000 are on short-term visas.

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On April 24, India announced that all visas issued to Pakistani nationals would be revoked from April 27 and asked these people to leave the country as tensions between the two countries escalated after the barbaric terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam left 26 people dead.

While the government later clarified that LTVs already granted to Hindu Pakistani nationals will remain valid, many refugees say they are worried about their fate, as their visas are renewed every two years and their applications for Indian citizenship under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 are still being processed.

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