India News and Travel Times Provides India-centric and other News and Features

Pakistani Hindus on a pilgrimage to India are unclear about their stay here following the incertitude regarding their fate in Pakistan. In wake of the recent acts of violence against the Hindu community in Pakistan, the pilgrims have planned to visit India and then take the final decision about their stay here. Recently, a group of over 250 pilgrims arrived at the Wagah border, where they boarded a bus to Amritsar , Haridwar, Rishikesh, Indore and Delhi on a month-long tour. Interacting with reporters here, a pilgrim, Anil Kumar said that he was yet to take the final decision with regards to his stay in India . "We can stay back if we want to and no one can stop us as we have come legally. I have one-month visa. We will get to know and learn everything and then we will decide if we have to stay or not. We have still not decided," Kumar said. Another pilgrim, Chandra, however, refused to stay in India and said that she had come only for two to three months. "We have come here for two to three months. We will visit and then go back," said Chandra. Pakistan authorities on Friday (August 10) had allowed a group of Hindu pilgrims to cross into India after seven hours of detention, following reports that they were planning to migrate in order to escape from abductions and attacks on their business establishments. The detention came after reports of an attempt to migration surfaced in the local media, even though the pilgrims carried valid month-long visas. Ten Hindu families had recently decided to migrate to India by contending that there were instances of forced conversions and violence against them, making them feel insecure in Pakistan . They also recalled that their shops were looted while unknown men raided their homes and women were molested at free will.

Pakistani Hindus on a pilgrimage unsure of their stay in India