Indian authorities separate mother from children over citizenship dispute

LAHORE: A heart-wrenching scene unfolded at the Wagah Border, as Indian authorities forcibly separated a mother from her two young children, handing the minors over to Pakistan while the mother was left behind in tears.

The emotional episode has drawn widespread condemnation and raised serious questions about the lack of compassion in cross-border policies.

Sana Bilal, a resident of Meerut, India, and an Indian passport holder, had married a Pakistani citizen, Bilal Gujjar, and was residing with him in Karachi. She had travelled to India on a 45-day visit visa to meet her family. However, her temporary visit turned into a painful separation.

According to Sana, following the Indian government’s directive on April 25 for all visiting Pakistani citizens to return, she proceeded to the Attari border with her two children — one-year-old Mahnoor and three-year-old Mustafa — intending to rejoin her husband in Pakistan.

But Indian officials blocked her departure, citing that while she was an Indian national, her children were Pakistani citizens and therefore had to be returned without her.

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On Monday, in a deeply emotional moment, Sana stood helplessly at the zero line, watching her children scream and cry as they were handed over to their father across the border. Witnesses, including security personnel, were moved to tears by the mother's anguished pleas and the children's distress.

Sana, sobbing uncontrollably, asked, "How will these innocent children live without their mother? Does the law have no place for humanity?" Her husband, clutching the children, returned to Karachi with a heavy heart, while Sana was left behind in India.