India orders Pakistani citizens to leave within 48 hours and suspends the Indus Waters Treaty.
Indian media reports that Pakistani citizens residing in India have been advised to leave the country within 48 hours, allegedly as a precaution to prevent potential law and order issues following the Pahalgam attack.
The announcement came during a press briefing by the Indian foreign ministry spokesperson, who also declared the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty.
Moreover, all visas issued to Pakistani nationals have been cancelled.
26 tourists killed
The Indian government took the decision in the wake of the deaths of 26 tourists when gunmen opened fire on visitors in a popular destination in occupied Kashmir a day ago.
Additionally, India has suspended visas issued under the SAARC framework for Pakistani citizens.
The spokesperson further stated that Indian nationals residing in Pakistan must return via the Attari border crossing by May 1.
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India has also declared all military, naval, and air advisers in the Pakistani High Commission as “persona non grata” and recalled its own defence attaché from Pakistan.
The entire staff of Pakistan’s High Commission in India has been given seven days to return to Pakistan.
Furthermore, India has announced a reduction in its diplomatic staff in Pakistan from 55 to 30 by May 1.
Pakistan’s response
Commenting on India’s actions, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif maintained on Wednesday that India had attempted to circumvent the treaty for many years through various tactics and justifications.
Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Asif said that the relevant clauses of the Indus Waters Treaty remained self-explanatory and required no interpretation.
He said that the procedure for amending and inserting new clauses had been mentioned explicitly in the treaty.
He emphasised that India’s rights and limitations under the treaty had been clearly defined, while Pakistan also remained bound by the same procedure.
“India is using a terrorist incident merely as a pretext to fulfil an old objective,” said Asif.
“They’ve been trying to get out of the Indus Water Treaty for a long time,” he said, “but this treaty was signed under the umbrella of the World Bank, and India cannot simply suspend it.”
“The World Bank is also involved in the Indus Waters Treaty. India cannot make this decision alone. Pakistan will give a befitting reply to Indian actions,” he added.
“There’s a National Security Committee meeting in the morning, and we will address all the remaining issues raised by India,” he said. “Our response will be unified and decisive.”
“Our forces have responded to India before — that is in front of everyone,” Asif stated, referencing past military exchanges and responses to diplomatic escalations.
He also took the opportunity to reiterate that no country has suffered from terrorism as extensively as Pakistan. “No country in the world has been targeted by terrorism as much as Pakistan has been,” Asif said.
