Srinagar, Indian-administered Kashmir – The silence of a slim alley in Srinagar, the primary metropolis of Indian-administered Kashmir, is damaged by the rehearsed beckoning of road distributors and the stressed cries of two little youngsters.
“Auntie, please take me to my mom; the police took her away,” shouts three-year-old Hussein, as he and his sister Noorie, a yr youthful than him, cling to the window of their one-room home, their faces pressed in opposition to rusted iron bars.
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Their father, Majid*, says the 2 have been calling out like that to virtually each passer-by since their mom, Samina*, a Pakistani nationwide, was forcibly taken away by Indian authorities and deported greater than seven months in the past.
The household’s ordeal started per week after half a dozen gunmen, a few them alleged to be Pakistani nationals, stormed a scenic vacationer spot in Indian-administered Kashmir’s Pahalgam space and shot 26 folks lifeless on April 22, 2025 in one of many worst assaults within the disputed area.
The Muslim-majority region of Kashmir is split between India and Pakistan, although the nuclear-armed neighbours declare it in full, whereas regional superpower China additionally controls a sliver of Kashmir’s land. Since India’s independence from British rule and its partition to create the state of Pakistan in 1947, the 2 nations have fought two of their three full-scale wars over Kashmir.
Within the late Nineteen Eighties, an armed insurrection in opposition to New Delhi’s rule erupted on the Indian facet, which has since claimed tens of 1000’s of lives, most of them civilians. The insurrection noticed the deployment of practically 1,000,000 Indian troopers, making it one of many world’s most militarised areas. The rebels goal to both carve an impartial nation out of Kashmir or merge the area with Muslim-majority Pakistan.
The anti-India sentiments in Kashmir intensified in 2019 when Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu majoritarian authorities scrapped a law that granted the area partial autonomy in issues of land possession and livelihoods, and cut up it into two “union territories” to be straight ruled by New Delhi. Since then, suspected Kashmiri rebels have launched a number of assaults in opposition to Indian safety forces and authorities staff. India accuses Pakistan of coaching and financing the rebels, however Islamabad dismisses the cost, claiming it solely gives diplomatic backing to Kashmir’s battle.
India blamed Pakistan for the Pahalgam assault as properly, and swiftly moved to downgrade all diplomatic ties, droop bilateral commerce, and place a key water treaty in abeyance. Two weeks after the killings, in early Could, India and Pakistan engaged in an intense four-day air war, every hanging the opposite’s navy bases. Dozens of individuals have been killed on each side — India insists it solely hit “terrorists” in Pakistan, whereas Islamabad stated civilians have been principally the victims — earlier than the neighbours agreed to a ceasefire.
However seven months later, the pause in combating has meant little for tons of of households, like Majid’s and Samina’s, that have been broken apart by one among India’s strikes.
Within the aftermath of the Pahalgam attack, India revoked all visas issued to Pakistani residents residing in India, together with medical and diplomatic visas, giving them an April 29, 2025 deadline to go away the nation, and shutting the Attari-Wagah border in Punjab province’s Amritsar district on Could 1.
Almost 800 Pakistanis – lots of them married to Indian nationals in Kashmir and different elements of India – have been deported.
With authorities offering no readability on whether or not these households will ever be reunited, the wait drags on for family members on each side of the border.
‘I consider ending my life’
Majid married Samina, his 38-year-old Pakistani cousin, in 2018.
Regardless of tense relations between their nations, their marriage was not particularly uncommon. When thousands and thousands of Muslims moved to a newly-created Pakistan in 1947 – as did Hindus to India – many left behind family members on each side of the border. Through the years, these blood ties gave rise to cross-border marriages between residents of the 2 nations.
However on April 28, Samina was summoned to the native police station in Srinagar’s Dalgate space. Noorie and Hussein slept on their laps because the couple met the police officer. When the kids awoke, they realised their father had introduced them again house, their mom now not round.
Samina was detained on the police station and knowledgeable that she can be deported to Pakistan — she is initially from Lahore — the subsequent day.
Sitting quietly in a dimly lit room that served as a bed room and kitchen, Majid stated he’s nonetheless struggling to course of the occasions that turned his life the wrong way up.
He used to attend tables at an area restaurant and earned about $70 a month. However since his spouse was taken away, he has not been in a position to go away his little youngsters alone. He’s now jobless.
“I’ve not slept correctly for six months now. My entire time is spent caring for the kids. I can’t take into consideration doing the rest,” he instructed Al Jazeera.
Confined to his room, Majid says he’s unable to exit even to purchase groceries. “Typically, I consider ending my life,” he stated. “However I cease myself, questioning who would deal with them when I’m gone.”
Majid’s youngsters, Hussein and Noorie, additionally have no idea when they are going to have the ability to see their mom.
“The sudden separation from Samina has traumatised them. They name out to their mom in sleep,” Majid instructed Al Jazeera as he made a futile try to distract his youngsters by displaying them cartoons on his cell phone.
“All they know is that the police took her away. At any time when they see any police or military officer, they ask them to convey their mom again.”
In the meantime, forcibly separated from her youngsters, Samina is fighting well being points in Pakistan. Her blood stress is unstable because of stress. “She will get hospitalised from time to time. Her blood stress isn’t normalising,” stated Majid.
When requested in regards to the deportations, Shazia Ilmi, spokeswoman for India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Get together (BJP), recommended that the strikes have been pushed by nationwide safety considerations. These deported have been Pakistani nationals, she emphasised, and sometimes have been “married to those that have been discovered concerned in terrorism and actions which can be antinational”, she instructed Al Jazeera.
“So this can’t change into a method for Pakistani nationals to marry into India and assist such actions. Why ought to India have Pakistani nationals?” she stated.
When pressed to current proof in assist of her allegation that deportees have been typically married to these concerned in “terrorism”, Ilmi accused Al Jazeera of getting a “doubtful agenda”. “I believe you may have a nasty agenda to search out issues in opposition to India and the Indian authorities, and it’ll not work,” she stated.
Reunited after years, separated once more in 12 days
Muhammad Shehbaz is a 32-year-old resident of Daryaganj, a densely populated neighbourhood of what’s known as Previous Delhi. In 2014, he married his maternal cousin from Pakistan, 27-year-old Erum. Since then, Erum had been dwelling in India on a long-term visa till she travelled to Pakistan to introduce their three-year-old son, Almeer, to her household.
That was in March 2020 – simply 10 days earlier than a lockdown and journey restrictions have been imposed within the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. Erum was pressured to increase her keep in Pakistan, throughout which her Indian visa expired.
After the lockdown was lifted, Shehbaz tried onerous to safe one other Indian visa in order that Erum might return. After 5 years of repeated rejections, she was lastly granted one in April this yr. After greater than 5 years of separation, an elated Shehbaz was lastly going to be reunited along with his household.
Erum reached New Delhi on April 17. Twelve days later, the Pahalgam assault occurred. She was deported again to Pakistan on April 29.
“After so a few years of separation, onerous work and longing, she had lastly come house. My world had lit up, and I forgot every thing. After which, within the blink of a watch, all of it collapsed once more. She was taken away, leaving me susceptible and drowning in despair,” Shehbaz instructed Al Jazeera.
“When the police got here to our house and knowledgeable us about Erum’s deportation, I grew to become numb. My son was crying inconsolably. The struggles I confronted all these years to reunite my household are past phrases. And now, it feels prefer it was all in useless.”
Almeer, now 9, first grew up for years with out his father and has now been torn away from his mom. Shehbaz, who runs a small jewelry enterprise, is anxious about his future.
“He has grown frail and quiet, not expressing a lot, however I can see he’s shattered inside,” Shehbaz instructed Al Jazeera. “Caught within the animosity between the 2 nations, why are extraordinary residents pushed to the wall? What’s our fault?”
Parveena hadn’t been to Pakistan in 40 years
Again in Indian-administered Kashmir, Fazl‑u‑Rehman, 62, doesn’t know if he would possibly have the ability to see his spouse, Parveena, who was deported in April to Pakistan, a rustic she had not seen in additional than 4 a long time.
Parveena, 65, was born in Pakistan’s Karachi metropolis. However she by no means went again after marrying Rehman in 1982, as she constructed a life together with her husband and youngsters in Baramulla district.
Rehman now fears he might die with out seeing her. “Our house has been divided. Every part is in ruins. I don’t know what number of years I’ll stay,” he instructed Al Jazeera, his voice choking.
Rehman and Parveena have two daughters – the elder one, Afreen, is married, whereas Soliha, 27, is at house, taking care of her ageing dad and mom whereas additionally pursuing a grasp’s diploma in political science.
“I missed my second semester mid-term exams in July whereas managing the family duties alone,” she instructed Al Jazeera. “I’ve to do it on their own – getting medicines, groceries and different family chores. Left with no choice, I needed to sacrifice my schooling.”
Soliha stated her mom has been present process remedy for coronary heart illness in Kashmir. However she has no means to proceed her remedy in Pakistan, the place she has no fast family members or monetary assist. She stated her mom lives in Karachi with a distant relative, who’s paralysed.
“There isn’t a one to take care of her. If something occurs to my mom there, the Indian authorities can be accountable,” she stated.
“If another person dedicated the crime, why are we being punished for it? My schooling and profession are at stake. I’m dealing with psychological well being points due to my mom’s deportation.”
Her father, Rehman, intervened. “There are 700,000 to 800,000 armed forces in Kashmir. In the event that they couldn’t forestall the [Pahalgam] assault, how are civilians being held accountable for it?” he requested, furiously.
Parveen urged the federal government to “cease punishing your personal residents” and demanded the return of their family members.
‘By no means felt so helpless in life’
Abdullah* says he has been pressured to rebuild his life that fell aside after his spouse, Tamarah*, 25, was deported on April 29. He says his twin toddlers – Ayan and Atif, simply 18 months previous – now not play, snort, or eat as they as soon as did. One of many twins was nonetheless breastfeeding when Tamarah was deported.
Abdullah, a 38-year-old public financial institution supervisor in Kashmir’s Kupwara district, married Tamarah in 2018. As she was pushed to the Attari-Wagah border for deportation, Abdullah took his youngsters and adopted the police van in his automobile all the way in which from Kupwara to Amritsar, a distance of greater than 500km (324 miles).
“I cried on the way in which, pleading helplessly with the police to at the least let the kids see their mom one final time,” he instructed Al Jazeera. “However they didn’t even enable us a correct goodbye.”
The primary two months have been “nothing in need of hell” for the kids.
“After the sudden separation from their mom, their well being started to deteriorate. They suffered frequent fevers and vomiting,” he stated, including that he has barely attended workplace prior to now six months, with one or the opposite little one needing hospitalisation.
“Every part is disrupted. Life has turned the wrong way up. I’ve by no means felt so helpless in my life,” he stated.
Abdullah stated even attorneys refused to take up the case of his youngsters, separated from their mom. He stated the attorneys stated no authorized motion might proceed with out permission from the federal Ministry of Residence Affairs. In desperation, Abdullah stated he wrote to Prime Minister Modi and different authorities in New Delhi and Kashmir, however acquired no response.
‘As a result of they’re Pakistanis and Muslims’
Human rights activists say there isn’t any justification for penalising harmless civilians because of the tensions between India and Pakistan.
“Peculiar folks maintain no enmity in direction of one another. Why ought to they undergo due to political or diplomatic conflicts?” stated Shabnam Hashmi, a New Delhi-based activist. “In any battle, civilians must not ever be the casualties. To separate a baby from their mom is merciless, traumatic, and totally inhuman – a transparent violation of human rights.”
Waheed Para, a Kashmiri legislator from the Peoples Democratic Get together, stated the deportation of Pakistani nationals is unjust and unlucky.
“After Kashmir’s conversion right into a union territory, our capacity to affect or resolve such points has been severely restricted. We will elevate our voices and attempt to intervene, however we stay largely powerless within the face of selections made elsewhere,” he instructed Al Jazeera, referring to the federal authorities in New Delhi.
“In cross-border shelling, civilians lose lives and houses. Sadly, harmless residents, youngsters, and ladies proceed to be the casualties of a geopolitical situation between India and Pakistan,” Para added.
Al Jazeera reached out to the Ministry of Residence Affairs for his or her response, however didn’t obtain any reply.
Colin Gonsalves, Supreme Court docket lawyer and rights activist, stated the deportation of Pakistani nationals has no official connection to the Pahalgam assault.
“Linking them to Pahalgam [attack] is solely an excuse and a deeply flawed one … The federal government might declare it’s a fallout of Pahalgam, however that declare shouldn’t be solely deceptive, it’s harmful,” he instructed Al Jazeera.
“They have been deported just because they’re Pakistanis and Muslims – a transparent reflection of a bias in opposition to each.”
Again in Kupwara, Abdullah wipes the tears rolling down his cheeks, struggling to talk as he recollects the months since his spouse Tamarah was deported.
“What the Indian authorities did to us is not any totally different from what the attackers did in Pahalgam. They destroyed our households and houses too,” he stated. “Why are our harmless youngsters being punished? What did they do?”
*Names modified to guard their identities over fears of presidency reprisal.
