J&K students urge Home Min & J&K L-G to resume travel of Kashmiri students to Pakistan

On Tuesday, the Jammu & Kashmir Students Association wrote a letter to Home Minister Amit Shah and J&K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha requesting to facilitate the travel of around 100 Kashmiri Medical and Engineering students to Pakistan. In the letter, the students claimed that they were asked for NOC/ Clearance at immigration to study in Pakistan and are stranded by the Indian immigration authorities. The students have urged the concerned authorities to provide them NOC clearance so that they won't lose their precious academic year. 

"Around 100 Students from Jammu and Kashmir were asked for NOC/ Clearance at immigration to study in Pakistan. Students were not allowed to travel to Pakistan through the Wagah border nor were allowed to travel via Dubai despite possessing all travel documents. Students were supposed to travel back to Pakistan by the 17th of March this year. However, they were stopped by Indian immigration authorities as they asked them to provide NOC from the Ministry of Education (MHRD) and the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA)respectively", the letter read.

Students stopped at Wagah Border

As per the Student's Association, a list of 349 citizens from J&K was approved by the Ministry of External Affairs on March 17, 2021. But after reaching the Wagah Border, students were stopped and told that their list is yet to reach them. The Indian immigration authorities allowed about 124 other passengers of which 81 were from Pakistan and the rest were hailing from other states of India. Students from J&K were asked to wait first and later in the evening they announced that they have changed the policies for travelling from India to Pakistan on the 16th of March. Authorities were supposed to inform students regarding the new policies of the Government of India, but they didn't. They informed students that only non-student travellers are supposed to get NOC from the Ministry of External Affairs. However, Medical and Engineering students are supposed to get NOC from MHRD and MHA as well.

"Since then, students were stopped from travel back to colleges and Universities through Wagah Border. On April 6, 2021, students who were supposed to travel back to Pakistan through Dubai were stopped by Indian immigration authorities at Indra Gandhi International Airport New Delhi from boarding the flight from Delhi to Dubai. The Immigration officer who stopped the students told them that they will be allowed only after they will get NOC from MHRD and MHA as orders from the Ministry of External Affairs," the letter read.

The letter further stated that though the students reached out to MHRD Ministry and NMC,  they were denied permission stating that they do not deal with such cases. MHRD Officials told students there are no such orders neither from the Ministry of Home Affairs nor from the Ministry of External Affairs. Many students have their final year exams scheduled and even missed their term exams as well. If students are not be allowed to travel to Pakistan on time to attend colleges and universities, they will miss the upcoming exams as well. 

Hence, the students have requested to take immediate steps to resolve the issue on humanitarian grounds and take immediate steps and to make all possible efforts to facilitate their travel to Pakistan via Wagah Border as their colleges and universities opened on May 28.

(Image Credits: PTI/J&KStudentsAsso/Twitter)