Headley effect: Visa from Pak to get tighter

In a move to tighten visa norms for Pakistanis and foreigners seeking to enter from the neighbouring country, India is redrafting its visa forms and making it mandatory for them to file their requests online.

In a move to tighten visa norms for Pakistanis and foreigners seeking to enter from the neighbouring country, India is redrafting its visa forms and making it mandatory for them to file their requests online.

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“This would enable security agencies to access the information promptly and conduct necessary verification,” said a senior government official.

The new forms will be mandatory for applicants in Pakistan, irrespective of their nationality.

Learning from the ease with which terror suspect David Headley was able to get a long-term business visa to India, the new form asks the applicant to report on previous nationalities held and if grandparents were Pakistani nationals or belong to an area held by Pakistan.

But while it tightens norms for Pakistanis, the government is also considering lowering the clearances needed by nationals of Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

The proposal for Bangladesh will soon be finalised as security agencies have had “an extraordinary level of cooperation” after the Sheikh Hasina government assumed power.

There is also a move to extend the relaxation to Lanka in view of the successful operations against the LTTE.