‘What’s our fault?’: India’s expulsion of Pakistanis still splits families

Srinagar, Indian-administered Kashmir – The soundlessness of a constrictive alley successful Srinagar, the main metropolis of Indian-administered Kashmir, is breached by the rehearsed beckoning of thoroughfare vendors and the restless cries of 2 small children.

“Auntie, delight instrumentality maine to my mother; the constabulary took her away,” shouts three-year-old Hussein, arsenic helium and his sister Noorie, a twelvemonth younger than him, cling to the model of their one-room house, their faces pressed against rusted robust bars.

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Their father, Majid*, says the 2 person been calling retired similar that to astir each passer-by since their mother, Samina*, a Pakistani national, was forcibly taken distant by Indian authorities and deported much than 7 months ago.

The family’s ordeal began a week aft fractional a twelve gunmen, a mates of them alleged to beryllium Pakistani nationals, stormed a scenic tourer spot successful Indian-administered Kashmir’s Pahalgam country and changeable 26 radical dormant connected April 22, 2025 successful 1 of the worst attacks successful the disputed region.

The Muslim-majority portion of Kashmir is divided betwixt India and Pakistan, though the nuclear-armed neighbours assertion it successful full, portion determination superpower China besides controls a sliver of Kashmir’s land. Since India’s independency from British regularisation and its partition to make the authorities of Pakistan successful 1947, the 2 countries person fought 2 of their 3 full-scale wars implicit Kashmir.

In the precocious 1980s, an equipped rebellion against New Delhi’s regularisation erupted connected the Indian side, which has since claimed tens of thousands of lives, astir of them civilians. The rebellion saw the deployment of astir a cardinal Indian soldiers, making it 1 of the world’s astir militarised regions. The rebels purpose to either carve an autarkic federation retired of Kashmir oregon merge the portion with Muslim-majority Pakistan.

The anti-India sentiments successful Kashmir intensified successful 2019 erstwhile Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu majoritarian authorities scrapped a law that granted the portion partial autonomy successful matters of onshore ownership and livelihoods, and divided it into 2 “union territories” to beryllium straight governed by New Delhi. Since then, suspected Kashmiri rebels person launched respective attacks against Indian information forces and authorities employees. India accuses Pakistan of grooming and financing the rebels, but Islamabad dismisses the charge, claiming it lone provides diplomatic backing to Kashmir’s struggle.

India blamed Pakistan for the Pahalgam onslaught arsenic well, and swiftly moved to downgrade each diplomatic ties, suspend bilateral trade, and spot a cardinal h2o pact successful abeyance. Two weeks aft the killings, successful aboriginal May, India and Pakistan engaged successful an aggravated four-day aerial war, each striking the other’s subject bases. Dozens of radical were killed connected some sides — India insists it lone deed “terrorists” successful Pakistan, portion Islamabad said civilians were principally the victims — earlier the neighbours agreed to a ceasefire.

But 7 months later, the intermission successful warring has meant small for hundreds of families, similar Majid’s and Samina’s, that were broken apart by 1 of India’s moves.

In the aftermath of the Pahalgam attack, India revoked each visas issued to Pakistani citizens residing successful India, including aesculapian and diplomatic visas, giving them an April 29, 2025 deadline to permission the country, and closing the Attari-Wagah borderline successful Punjab province’s Amritsar territory connected May 1.

Nearly 800 Pakistanis – galore of them joined to Indian nationals successful Kashmir and different parts of India – were deported.

With authorities providing nary clarity connected whether those families volition ever beryllium reunited, the hold drags connected for relatives connected some sides of the border.

‘I deliberation of ending my life’

Majid joined Samina, his 38-year-old Pakistani cousin, successful 2018.

Despite tense relations betwixt their countries, their matrimony was not particularly rare. When millions of Muslims moved to a newly-created Pakistan successful 1947 – arsenic did Hindus to India – galore near down relatives connected some sides of the border. Over the years, these humor ties gave emergence to cross-border marriages betwixt citizens of the 2 countries.

But connected April 28, Samina was summoned to the section constabulary presumption successful Srinagar’s Dalgate area. Noorie and Hussein slept connected their laps arsenic the mates met the constabulary officer. When the children woke up, they realised their begetter had brought them backmost home, their parent nary longer around.

Samina was detained astatine the constabulary presumption and informed that she would beryllium deported to Pakistan — she is primitively from Lahore — the adjacent day.

Sitting softly successful a dimly lit country that served arsenic a chamber and kitchen, Majid said helium is inactive struggling to process the events that turned his beingness upside down.

Majid’s children looking retired of the model of their one-room location [Arjumand Shaheen/Al Jazeera]

He utilized to hold tables astatine a section edifice and earned astir $70 a month. But since his woman was taken away, helium has not been capable to permission his small children alone. He is present jobless.

“I person not slept decently for six months now. My full clip is spent taking attraction of the children. I cannot deliberation astir doing thing else,” helium told Al Jazeera.

Confined to his room, Majid says helium is incapable to spell retired adjacent to bargain groceries. “Sometimes, I deliberation of ending my life,” helium said. “But I halt myself, wondering who would instrumentality attraction of them erstwhile I americium gone.”

Majid’s children, Hussein and Noorie, besides bash not cognize erstwhile they volition beryllium capable to spot their mother.

“The abrupt separation from Samina has traumatised them. They telephone retired to their parent successful sleep,” Majid told Al Jazeera arsenic helium made a futile effort to distract his children by showing them cartoons connected his mobile phone.

“All they cognize is that the constabulary took her away. Whenever they spot immoderate constabulary oregon service officer, they inquire them to bring their parent back.”

Meanwhile, forcibly separated from her children, Samina is struggling with wellness issues successful Pakistan. Her humor unit is unstable owed to stress. “She gets hospitalised each present and then. Her humor unit isn’t normalising,” said Majid.

When asked astir the deportations, Shazia Ilmi, spokeswoman for India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), suggested that the moves were driven by nationalist information concerns. Those deported were Pakistani nationals, she emphasised, and often were “married to those who person been recovered progressive successful coercion and activities that are antinational”, she told Al Jazeera.

“So this cannot go a mode for Pakistani nationals to wed into India and enactment specified activities. Why should India person Pakistani nationals?” she said.

When pressed to contiguous grounds successful enactment of her allegation that deportees were often joined to those progressive successful “terrorism”, Ilmi accused Al Jazeera of having a “dubious agenda”. “I deliberation you person a nasty docket to find things against India and the Indian government, and it volition not work,” she said.

Reunited aft years, separated again successful 12 days

Muhammad Shehbaz is simply a 32-year-old nonmigratory of Daryaganj, a densely populated neighbourhood of what is called Old Delhi. In 2014, helium joined his maternal relative from Pakistan, 27-year-old Erum. Since then, Erum had been surviving successful India connected a semipermanent visa until she travelled to Pakistan to present their three-year-old son, Almeer, to her family.

That was successful March 2020 – conscionable 10 days earlier a lockdown and question restrictions were imposed successful the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic. Erum was forced to widen her enactment successful Pakistan, during which her Indian visa expired.

After the lockdown was lifted, Shehbaz tried hard to unafraid different Indian visa truthful that Erum could return. After 5 years of repeated rejections, she was yet granted 1 successful April this year. After much than 5 years of separation, an elated Shehbaz was yet going to beryllium reunited with his family.

Erum reached New Delhi connected April 17. Twelve days later, the Pahalgam onslaught happened. She was deported backmost to Pakistan connected April 29.

“After truthful galore years of separation, hard enactment and longing, she had yet travel home. My satellite had lit up, and I forgot everything. And then, successful the blink of an eye, it each collapsed again. She was taken away, leaving maine susceptible and drowning successful despair,” Shehbaz told Al Jazeera.

“When the constabulary came to our location and informed america astir Erum’s deportation, I became numb. My lad was crying inconsolably. The struggles I faced each these years to reunite my household are beyond words. And now, it feels similar it was each successful vain.”

Almeer, present nine, archetypal grew up for years without his begetter and has present been torn distant from his mother. Shehbaz, who runs a tiny jewellery business, is disquieted astir his future.

“He has grown frail and quiet, not expressing much, but I tin spot helium is shattered inside,” Shehbaz told Al Jazeera. “Caught successful the animosity betwixt the 2 countries, wherefore are mean citizens pushed to the wall? What is our fault?”

Parveena hadn’t been to Pakistan successful 40 years

Back successful Indian-administered Kashmir, Fazl‑u‑Rehman, 62, does not cognize if helium mightiness beryllium capable to spot his wife, Parveena, who was deported successful April to Pakistan, a state she had not seen successful much than 4 decades.

Parveena, 65, was calved successful Pakistan’s Karachi city. But she ne'er went backmost aft marrying Rehman successful 1982, arsenic she built a beingness with her hubby and children successful Baramulla district.

Rehman present fears helium whitethorn dice without seeing her. “Our location has been divided. Everything is successful ruins. I don’t cognize however galore years I volition live,” helium told Al Jazeera, his dependable choking.

Soliha Parveen shows a photograph of her mother, Parveena, connected her mobile telephone [Arjumand Shaheen/Al Jazeera]

Rehman and Parveena person 2 daughters – the elder one, Afreen, is married, portion Soliha, 27, is astatine home, looking aft her ageing parents portion besides pursuing a master’s grade successful governmental science.

“I missed my 2nd semester mid-term exams successful July portion managing the household responsibilities alone,” she told Al Jazeera. “I person to bash it each unsocial – getting medicines, groceries and different household chores. Left with nary option, I had to sacrifice my education.”

Soliha said her parent has been undergoing attraction for bosom illness successful Kashmir. But she has nary means to proceed her attraction successful Pakistan, wherever she has nary contiguous relatives oregon fiscal support. She said her parent lives successful Karachi with a distant relative, who is paralysed.

“There is nary 1 to look aft her. If thing happens to my parent there, the Indian authorities would beryllium responsible,” she said.

“If idiosyncratic other committed the crime, wherefore are we being punished for it? My acquisition and vocation are astatine stake. I americium facing intelligence wellness issues due to the fact that of my mother’s deportation.”

Her father, Rehman, intervened. “There are 700,000 to 800,000 equipped forces successful Kashmir. If they couldn’t forestall the [Pahalgam] attack, however are civilians being held liable for it?” helium asked, furiously.

Parveen urged the authorities to “stop punishing your ain citizens” and demanded the instrumentality of their loved ones.

‘Never felt truthful helpless successful life’

Abdullah* says helium has been forced to rebuild his beingness that fell isolated aft his wife, Tamarah*, 25, was deported connected April 29. He says his duplicate toddlers – Ayan and Atif, conscionable 18 months aged – nary longer play, laugh, oregon devour arsenic they erstwhile did. One of the twins was inactive breastfeeding erstwhile Tamarah was deported.

Abdullah, a 38-year-old nationalist slope manager successful Kashmir’s Kupwara district, joined Tamarah successful 2018. As she was driven to the Attari-Wagah borderline for deportation, Abdullah took his children and followed the constabulary van successful his car each the mode from Kupwara to Amritsar, a region of much than 500km (324 miles).

“I cried connected the way, pleading helplessly with the constabulary to astatine slightest fto the children spot their parent 1 past time,” helium told Al Jazeera. “But they didn’t adjacent let america a due goodbye.”

The archetypal 2 months were “nothing abbreviated of hell” for the children.

“After the abrupt separation from their mother, their wellness began to deteriorate. They suffered predominant fevers and vomiting,” helium said, adding that helium has hardly attended bureau successful the past six months, with 1 oregon the different kid needing hospitalisation.

“Everything is disrupted. Life has turned upside down. I person ne'er felt truthful helpless successful my life,” helium said.

Abdullah said adjacent lawyers refused to instrumentality up the lawsuit of his children, separated from their mother. He said the lawyers said nary ineligible enactment could proceed without support from the national Ministry of Home Affairs. In desperation, Abdullah said helium wrote to Prime Minister Modi and different authorities successful New Delhi and Kashmir, but received nary response.

‘Because they are Pakistanis and Muslims’

Human rights activists accidental determination is nary justification for penalising guiltless civilians owed to the tensions betwixt India and Pakistan.

“Ordinary radical clasp nary enmity towards each other. Why should they endure due to the fact that of governmental oregon diplomatic conflicts?” said Shabnam Hashmi, a New Delhi-based activist. “In immoderate conflict, civilians indispensable ne'er beryllium the casualties. To abstracted a kid from their parent is cruel, traumatic, and utterly inhuman – a wide usurpation of quality rights.”

Waheed Para, a Kashmiri legislator from the Peoples Democratic Party, said the deportation of Pakistani nationals is unjust and unfortunate.

“After Kashmir’s conversion into a national territory, our quality to power oregon resoluteness specified issues has been severely limited. We tin rise our voices and effort to intervene, but we stay mostly powerless successful the look of decisions made elsewhere,” helium told Al Jazeera, referring to the national authorities successful New Delhi.

“In cross-border shelling, civilians suffer lives and homes. Unfortunately, guiltless citizens, children, and women proceed to beryllium the casualties of a geopolitical contented betwixt India and Pakistan,” Para added.

Al Jazeera reached retired to the Ministry of Home Affairs for their response, but did not person immoderate reply.

Colin Gonsalves, Supreme Court lawyer and rights activist, said the deportation of Pakistani nationals has nary morganatic transportation to the Pahalgam attack.

“Linking them to Pahalgam [attack] is simply an excuse and a profoundly flawed 1 … The authorities whitethorn assertion it is simply a fallout of Pahalgam, but that assertion is not lone misleading, it’s dangerous,” helium told Al Jazeera.

“They were deported simply due to the fact that they are Pakistanis and Muslims – a wide reflection of a bias against both.”

Back successful Kupwara, Abdullah wipes the tears rolling down his cheeks, struggling to talk arsenic helium recollects the months since his woman Tamarah was deported.

“What the Indian authorities did to america is nary antithetic from what the attackers did successful Pahalgam. They destroyed our families and homes too,” helium said. “Why are our guiltless children being punished? What did they do?”

*Names changed to support their identities implicit fears of authorities reprisal.