ACCESSED: Here's an invite card to the Pakistan Day celebration being held at the Pak High Commission

Republic TV accessed the invitation sent to Vice President of Delhi Youth Congress, Jan-e-Alam on the occassion of Pakistan Day event at the Pakistan High Commission in Delhi.

The invite of the reception was extended to Jan-e-Alam and his wife. 

However, the government on Friday decided to boycott the Pakistan National Day event to be held at its high commission in India as Kashmiri separatist leaders were also invited, an official said.

Over the past few years, India's representation at the annual event has been at the level of a Union Minister. This year, Indian government officials will stay away from the reception scheduled on the eve of Pakistan National Day, which is celebrated on March 23, the official said.

"The government of India has decided not to send any official representative to the Pakistan National Day event at the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi," the official said. The decision has been taken because Pakistan has decided to invite separatist Hurriyat leaders from Jammu and Kashmir to the event, the official added. 

Later in the day, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) official Raveesh Kumar shed more light on as to why India is boycotting Pakistan's National Day.

"No official Indian representative will be a part of the Pakistan official day this year. High Commission of India in Pakistan will also not attend the Pak day this year. Pak High Commission took the decision to invite Hurriyat and hence we have decided to boycott the same," he said.

The decision comes in the wake of heightened tension between the two nuclear-armed neighbours after the Pulwama terror attack, in which 40 CRPF jawans lost their lives, and the subsequent air strike by India on a training camp of the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) in Pakistan's Balakot on February 26.

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