Delay in issuance of visas by the Indian Embassy is irking some 400 Zaireen (pilgrims), who desire to attend the annual Urs of Hazrat Khawaja Moinuddin Chishti (Khawaja Gharib Nawaz) from February 3 to 14 in Ajmer Sharif.
According to a Religious Affairs Ministry official, the Indian Embassy should have issued visas a couple of days ago so that the intending pilgrims could properly manage their travelling schedule accordingly.
As the pilgrims hailed from far-flung areas of the country, it would be quite difficult for them to make it to the designated place to start their journey if visas were issued a few hours before the Urs day, he told APP on Monday. However, the ministry had already advised all the intending pilgrims to report at the Haji Camp Lahore on February 2 so that they could be properly guided about their visit to Ajmer Sharif, the official said.
Citing the past experience, he feared that the Indian authorities were unpredictable and might not issue visas to the Ajmer Sharif’s Zaireen at the last moment. The Pakistan pilgrims’ visit to Ajmer Sharif is an annual feature and under the 1974 Pakistan-India Protocol on Visits to Religious Shrines, India is bound to issue visas for the purpose.
