New Delhi:
It was the perfect Eid gift for Pakistani national Nuzhat Jahan and her Indian husband, Mohammed Gulfam. The Delhi High Court today ordered Nuzhat to be released immediately from a beggars' home, where she had been lodged since May because of visa violation.
Nuzhat, 48, married Gulfam, 52, in 1983 and moved to Delhi. Her application for Indian citizenship, filed way back in 1996, has still not been approved. She fears it may have been lost.
That doesn't, however, stop Nuzhat from feeling every bit an Indian. "It is impossible to for me to go back to Pakistan. India is my home. I have spent so many years here, my children, grandchildren are all here," she tells NDTV.
The Delhi High Court has ordered the authorities to take a decision on her application within three months and allow her to celebrate Eid with her family.
Gulfam and Nuzhat remain optimistic, not just about their re-union, but also the India-Pakistan relations. "There is no difference in the two nations: same clothes, same culture, and same food. It is the governments that create the divide," says Gulfam.
On Eid, one hopes this message of peace and love transcends all borders.