Visas for Pak-born US nationals to be cleared by New Delhi

As an immediate fall out of the FBI foiling a LeT plot to use US nationals to carry out major terror attacks in India, the Indian Embassy in Washington has tightened visa approval norms for Pakistan-born American citizens, whose applications would now have to be cleared by New Delhi.

As an immediate fall out of the FBI foiling a LeT plot to use US nationals to carry out major terror attacks in India, the Indian Embassy in New Delhi has tightened visa approval norms for Pakistan-born American citizens, whose applications would now have to be cleared by New Delhi.

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An instruction in this regard has recently been issued by Union Home Secretary G K Pillai, according to which all applications for Indian visa from Pakistani-born US nationals would now be processed and cleared by New Delhi.

The measure has been taken in view of the busting of the Lashkar-e-Toiba plot, in which the Pakistan-based terror group was planning to use Pak-born US national David Coleman Headley to launch terrorist attacks in India.

Because of the good relationship between India and the United States, American citizens never have had any problem in receiving the visa. Besides, the Indian Embassy in Washington, the Indian Consulates in New York, Houston, Chicago and San Francisco too issue Indian visas.

All the Indian Missions in the US have been directed to adhere to the new instructions in this regard from New Delhi.