Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): As the country mourns the tragic loss of 26 lives in the Pahalgam terror attack, its ripple effects are being felt far and wide.
Among those affected is Ovaiz Khan, a 34-year-old resident of Bhopal, whose plans to reunite with his Pakistani wife have come to a halt due to the closure of the Attari-Wagah border following the attack.
Ovaiz, a hardware trader who lives in Koh-e-Fiza, was scheduled to travel to Karachi on May 9 to bring his wife Hira to India, but with suspension of cross-border movement, his visa which was to expire on May 26, now stands cancelled.
Ovaiz and Hira got married online on March 9, last year after a 16-year courtship. 38-year-old Hira lives in Landi locality of Karachi.
“Her nanihal (maternal grandmother’s place) was in Bhopal and she used to come here to visit her relatives. I met her for the first time in 2009 in Bhopal and I fell in love with her. We haven't met since 2013,” said Ovaize.
Ovaiz said that he requested her parents for her hand and they agreed. Then Pulwama happened, making a conventional Nikah impossible. “There were restrictions on both sides,” he said, adding that “our visa applications were turned down.”
Ultimately, the two families decided to go for an online Nikah. After that, Hira applied to the Pakistan Government to enter the name of her husband in her passport.
Pakistani bride Hira | FP Image
That took a few months. Then she applied to the Indian embassy for a visa to travel to India. Finally, she succeeded in getting a Visa of five-month validity.
On this side of the border, Owaiz applied to the Pakistan Embassy for a visa to travel to Karachi. That was granted about two months back. Paperwork done, he booked a ticket on the train that runs between Amritsar and Lahore via the Attari-Wagah border.
“I was to board the train on May 9 from Amritsar. From Lahore I would have travelled to Karachi, stayed for some days with my in-laws and returned to India with Hira,” he said. Owaiz talks to his wife on WhatsApp video calls every day for at least 15-20 minutes.
Since their marriage, both her parents have passed away last year and she now lives with her brother. “My wife started crying over the phone when she came to know that we won’t be able to meet as our visa may expire.”
