New Delhi: English spinner Shoaib Bashir has finally got his Indian visa after a delay that prevented him from joining the squad for the first match of the India-England test series starting Thursday, ThePrint has learnt.
Sources in the Indian security establishment said that the visa has been approved and the 20-year-old cricketer has submitted his passport for stamping. They further said that Bashir’s visa was delayed because he is of Pakistani origin and the rules are different in such cases.
While all foreign nationals are free to apply for Indian visas under various categories, the rules are different when it comes to Pakistani citizens or those of Pakistani origin.
Even in the case of Bangladeshi citizens, the rules are slightly different from what they are for the rest of the world.
“There is a process in place and in line with that process, clearance was received earlier this week. Officials in the High Commission in London were in touch with the ECB (England and Wales cricket board) to ensure the player’s visa is issued to him immediately. However, the player travelled to Abu Dhabi,” a source explained.
“By the time he was reached out to, he had returned to London. Now since he has submitted his passport today, his visa was issued so that he could join his team,” the source added.
Bashir is a British citizen by birth but his parents are from Pakistan.
ThePrint pieces together the provisions of Indian laws that govern granting of visas to persons of Pakistani origin.
Visa rules, like in all cases, are governed by the Foreigners Division of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
There are two categories of Indian visa applicants of Pakistani origin — those who hold a dual citizenship (holding Pakistani passport and that of another country) and those who don’t have a Pakistani passport but have their roots there.
The Indian government classifies applicants of Pakistani origin as those from a foreign country who are married to Pakistani nationals or have parents or grandparents who have held Pakistani passports in the past.
The MHA also states that if any person had held Pakistani citizenship in the past, they will have to declare it while applying for a visa to India.
The applicants in this case are required to provide documentary evidence by submitting certified copies of renunciation of their Pakistani citizenship.
And in case the applicant holds a dual citizenship, it is mandatory for them to apply for an Indian visa on the Pakistani passport.
Moreover, in case of an applicant who was born outside Pakistan but has Pakistani roots (if parents or grandparents were Pakistani citizens), they are required to furnish a certificate of “naturalisation as foreign citizens”.
“In the case of Bashir, although he was born in the UK, his parents hail from Pakistan. So, according to the rules since he was born outside of Pakistan, he was required to submit a birth certificate from the local authority of the UK as a document for visa processing,” an official explained.
Due to increased scrutiny of applicants of Pakistani origin, the process of clearance and issuance of Indian visas also takes longer.
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