"Allow me to cross": Iranian tourist appeals to Indian authorities for return home after border closure

Amritsar (Punjab) [India], April 26 (ANI): Iranian national Ahelam, who holds a visa for travel by road, has appealed to Indian authorities for permission to return home after the government announced the immediate closure of the Integrated Check Post (ICP) at Attari as part of strengthened security measures.

While speaking to ANI on Saturday, Ahelam said that officials did not allow her to cross the border, as only Pakistani nationals were permitted to walk through.

“Yes, this is the only way I cross from Pakistan to Iran. This is the only border. I have a tourist visa by road. Now I'm requesting the Home Minister to kindly give me permission to go to my country from this Wagah Border because my country is Iran,” she said.

“They say only Pakistani nationals can go back [from Wagah Border], but we are Iranians and the Iranian road is this way only. There is a reason why we travel in our private vehicle. I'm travelling alone. I'm the only person in this vehicle,” she added.

The Iranian national found herself in a murky situation amid the government’s countermeasures following the Pahalgam terror attack, the central government revoked all categories of visas issued to Pakistani citizens, except long-term visas, diplomatic and official visas, with immediate effect from April 27. However, medical visas issued to Pakistani nationals will be valid only till April 29.

“I was here from yesterday. I'm actually very sorry for the deaths of the tourists. I'm also a tourist, but now I'm suffering...I seek permission from PM Narenda Modi and from the Home Minister to cross this border and go back to my home in Iran,” she said.

Ahelam called India her "second home" and asked the citizens to help her cross the border by pleading her case to the authorities. 

“I appreciate the people of India. I love India. It is like my second home because I spent many years here. But I need your help to cross the border,” she said.

The fresh decision taken by the MHA marks a sweeping policy shift aimed at tightening border security and regulating the presence of Pakistani nationals within the country following the deadly April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 tourists. (ANI)