As India launched a diplomatic offensive against Pakistan after terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, the Border Security Force (BSF) on Thursday said it has scaled down the retreat ceremony held at Attari, Hussainiwala and Sadki along the India-Pakistan border in Punjab.
On Tuesday, 26 men, mostly tourists, were gunned down by terrorists in picturesque tourist location of Pahalgam on Tuesday.
“In the wake of the recent tragic attack in Pahalgam, a calibrated decision has been taken to scale down the ceremonial display during the Retreat Ceremony at Attari, Hussainiwala and Sadki in Punjab,” said the BSF’s Punjab frontier, which guards 532 km of this front out of the total 2,200 km.
In a statement, it added that as part of this calibrated decision, it was suspending the symbolic handshake of the Indian guard commander with the counterpart and the border gates will remain closed during the ceremony.
“This step reflects India’s serious concern over cross-border hostilities and reaffirms that peace and provocation cannot coexist,” it added.
Meanwhile, India has briefed ambassadors of select countries based in New Delhi, including Germany, Japan, Poland, the UK, and Russia, on the Pahalgam terror attack.
Top diplomats from the United States, the European Union, Italy, Qatar, Japan, China, Russia, Germany, and France, among others, were seen arriving at the Ministry of External Affairs located in South Block in the national capital.
Earlier in the day, India suspended visa services to Pakistani nationals and revoked existing visas
“In continuation of the decisions made by the Cabinet Committee on Security in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack, the Government of India has decided to suspend visa services to Pakistani nationals with immediate effect.”
“All existing valid visas issued by India to Pakistani nationals stand revoked with effect from 27 April 2025. Medical visas issued to Pakistani nationals will be valid only till 29 April 2025,” the statement added.
Further, the minister noted that all Pakistani nationals currently in India must leave India before the expiry of their visas, as now amended.
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