Cross-Border Marriages Resume After Operation Sindoor Restrictions

Around 150 Pakistani women who were engaged to men in India have now arrived in the country for their weddings, following a period of uncertainty caused by visa restrictions and the closure of the Wagah-Attari border route. The weddings of these women had been put on hold after India cancelled visas for Pakistani citizens travelling through the Attari route following Operation Sindoor, a military campaign launched in 2025 in response to a deadly terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, which killed 26 civilians.

Rajesh Jhambia, a community leader from Nagpur who works with Sindhi migrants from Pakistan, told PTI that the long wait was finally over. He said that the brides and their relatives had arrived in India through transit routes via Muscat, Dubai, Sri Lanka and other countries.

Operation Sindoor and the Closure of the Land Route

For years, hassle-free visas and movement through the Wagah-Attari border in Punjab had allowed families from Pakistan's Sindh province to marry their daughters in India without difficulty. However, the scenario changed after Operation Sindoor, as the government rejected visas for all those who planned to enter India via the Attari route. Jhambia explained, "Everything changed after Operation Sindoor, as the government rejected visas to all those who were planning to visit the country via the Attari route."

The closure of the land route and the visa rejection affected many families, bringing wedding plans to a standstill.

Sant Yudhishtirlal Shadaani and the Temple's Intervention

In response to the difficulties, the community approached Sant Yudhishtirlal Shadaani, the spiritual head of Shadaani Darbar, a prominent Hindu religious shrine located in Raipur and also associated with Ghotki in Pakistan's Sindh province. The Shadaani Darbar started preparing a list of Pakistani women who were engaged to men in India.

According to Jhambia, there were about 150 brides who were to be married in Nagpur, Raipur, Jodhpur, Pune and other cities in India. The temple then contacted the Ministry of Home Affairs with the list and urged authorities to facilitate visas for the brides and their families.

The Ministry allowed these visitors to enter India on the condition that they travel only by air. As a result, since April this year, 150 brides and their families have arrived in India, transit via Dubai, Oman, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and other countries. Among these are 15 cases from Nagpur alone.

Nearly 300 More Await Visas

Despite the progress, the matter is not fully resolved. According to Jhambia, nearly 300 other women in Pakistan are still scheduled to marry families in India. The community has asked the Indian government to consider their cases and issue visas so their weddings can also take place.

Perspectives

  • Community Leader and Brides: The intention of the Pakistani brides and their families is to complete marriages that were already fledged, and emphasis is also on the human angle of family separation. Jhambia expressed relief that the waiting is over, highlighting the human consequences of the earlier visa restrictions.
  • Indian Government and Ministry of Home Affairs: The government's actions are presented as facilitating the resumption of weddings by issuing visas, though with an air travel condition. This position underlines regulatory measures in the wake of Operation Sindoor, balancing security concerns with the humanitarian aspects of marriage reunions.

The long-standing tradition of such cross-border weddings is acknowledged as a normal, long-running practice, while the current situation is framed as a mitigation of an event that had, temporarily, let alone.