India on Thursday announced that medical visas issued to all Pakistanis will be valid only till April 29, as it stepped up measures against the neighbouring country in the wake of the terror attack in Pahalgam in Anantnag district of Jammu & Kashmir that killed 26 people.
In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the government has decided to suspend all visa services to Pakistani nationals with immediate effect. All existing valid visas issued by India to Pakistani nationals stand revoked with effect from April 27. Medical visas issued to Pakistani nationals will be valid only till April 29, the MEA said, giving the foreigners three-days time to leave the country. Click here for Pahalgam terror attack live updates
"All Pakistani nationals currently in India must leave India before the expiry of visas, as now amended," it said.
The developments came as India downgraded diplomatic ties with Pakistan and announced a raft of measures in retaliation to the April 22 attack that claimed the lives of 25 Indians and one Nepali citizen.
The attack took place at Baisaran, dubbed 'mini Switzerland' for its meadow. The Resistance Front (TRF), a shadow group of the banned Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terror group, claimed responsibility.
On Wednesday, India announced the expulsion of Pakistani military attaches, suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty of 1960 and immediate shutting down of the Attari land-transit post, among other measures.
Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said Pakistani nationals will not be allowed to travel to India under the SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) Visa Exemption Scheme. Any Pakistanis in India on such visas will also have to leave the country within 48 hours.
Another major announcement was that the defence/military, naval and air advisors in the Pakistani High Commission in New Delhi have been declared "persona non grata" and have a week to leave India. New Delhi will also withdraw such advisors from the Indian High Commission in Islamabad.
Pakistan hit back at India over the measures, on Thursday. It blocked its airspace for Indian airlines, closed the Wagah border crossing, suspended all trade with India, and said any attempt to divert water meant for Pakistan under the Indus Water Treaty will be considered an Act of War.
"Any threat to Pakistan's sovereignty and to the security of its people will be met with firm reciprocal measures in all domains. India should refrain from its reflexive blame game and cynical staged, managed exploitation of incidents like Pahalgam to further its narrow political agenda," the Pakistan Prime Minister's Office said in a statement.
The announcements were made after a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to formulate the country's response to India's measures.
