India’s moratorium on visas has torn Afghan families asunder

For decades, Mohammad Karim Dastagir thought of India as a ‘second home’, a country he travelled to for work, and the country where he met his wife Rifaut. While the Taliban takeover of Kabul and the closure of the Indian embassy robbed Karim of his livelihood and his sense of security, India’s decision to cancel all pre-existing visas for Afghans nearly robbed him of his family, including Rifaut and his daughter, four-year-old Hanya. Spouses of Indian nationals who were outside India when the Taliban took over Indian nationals married to Afghans who do not want to return home without children/ spouses Afghan students who had received new admissions and scholarships Afghan students who had returned home during the COVID-19 pandemic and for summer vacations Afghan students in India who are unable to return and visit their families for fear they can’t come back to India Traders and businessmen seeking to resume travel to India No fairytale ending Karim isn’t alone. During a public lecture in Vadodara in October 2022, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar told a group of Afghan students who petitioned him that “nobody could doubt India’s feelings for the Afghan people”.