312 Sikh foreign nationals taken off Indian government's blacklist, they can now enter nation
New Delhi, Sept 13 (IBNS): The Indian government has removed 312 Sikh foreign nationals, who were blacklisted by the government, from the Central Adverse List or blacklist, thus enabling them to apply for visa to visit families in India.
Only names of two Sikh people remained in the list.
People, whose names have been removed from the list, can now enter India.
They will now be eligible to avail visa services to visit families in India.
"This review is a continuous and dynamic process and is a part of a regular exercise. Such a review will afford an opportunity to such Sikh foreign nationals to visit India, meet their family members and reconnect to their roots," said a government source.
"During 1980s, many Sikh Indian nationals and foreign nationals belonging to Sikh community fell to anti-India propaganda. Some Sikh Indian nationals fled India to escape Indian authorities, became foreign nationals and took asylum outside India. They were placed in the adverse list till 2016, making them ineligible to avail visa services to visit India."
"One major issue coming in the way of grant of consular/visa services to asylees and their family members, mostly belonging to Sikh community, was maintenance of local adverse lists by Indian Missions," the source said.
This practise has also been discontinued. Consequently, all Indian Missions or Posts abroad have been advised to grant appropriate visa to all categories of asylees and derivative asylees (i.e. family members) whose names do not figure in the Central Adverse List, in line with the procedure followed for other categories of applicants of that nationality.
All categories of asylees who become eligible for issuance of long term Indian visa will also be eligible to apply for registration as Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) cardholder after they have applied for and held normal visas for a period of two years, the government said.
In early 1980 some Sikhs Indian nations had left India and took asylum in foreign countries; they were placed in the adverse list, making them ineligible to avail Indian visa.
Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons
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