India declares Pakistani military diplomats Persona Non Grata

New Delhi: India has summoned Pakistan's top diplomat in Delhi, Saad Ahmad Warraich, and handed over the formal Persona Non Grata note for its military diplomats, as per sources. India's action comes after 26 people were killed and several others sustained injuries in the dastardly attack by terrorists on tourists in Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday. 

In the aftermath of the terrorist attack, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday chaired a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), attended by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar among others. 

A slew of measures were taken in the wake of the terrorist attack. Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said that recognising the seriousness of the terrorist attack, the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) decided upon the following measures, which included five key decisions.Misri said, "The Defence/Military, Naval and Air Advisors in the Pakistani High Commission in New Delhi are declared Persona Non Grata. They have a week to leave India. India will be withdrawing its own Defence/Navy/Air Advisors from the Indian High Commission in Islamabad. These posts in the respective High Commissions are deemed annulled. Five support staff of the Service Advisors will also be withdrawn from both High Commissions."

He also said that the Integrated Check Post at Attari will be closed with immediate effect. Misri said, "Those who have crossed over with valid endorsements may return through that route before May 1, 2025."

Other measures decided upon by the CCS include the abeyance of the Indus Waters Treaty "with immediate effect, until Pakistan credibly and irrevocably abjures its support for cross-border terrorism".

Another step includes not permitting Pakistani nationals to travel to India under the SAARC Visa Exemption Scheme (SVES) visas. "Any SVES visas issued in the past to Pakistani nationals are deemed cancelled. Any Pakistani national currently in India under an SVES visa has 48 hours to leave India," Misri said. 

According to the Foreign Secretary, the overall strength of the High Commissions will be cut to 30 from the current 55 by May 1, 2025. A resolve was taken during the CCS meeting that the  perpetrators of the attack will be brought to justice and their sponsors held to account.

Persona non grata" is a Latin term that means "an unwelcome person." In diplomacy, it’s a formal way for one country to declare that a foreign diplomat is no longer acceptable or welcome in its territory. In view of the recent terror attack, India, as a host country, notified the Pakistan government through a formal notice that they have to recall its diplomats. 

The Resistance Front (TRF), a shadow group of banned Pakistani terrorist Hafiz Saeed's outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), on Tuesday claimed responsibility for the ghastly attack on tourists in Pahalgam. 

"More than 85,000 domiciles have been issued to non-locals, creating a pathway for demographic change in Indian-occupied Jammu & Kashmir (IIOJK). These non-locals arrive posing as tourists, obtain domiciles, and then act as if they own the land. Consequently, violence will be directed toward those attempting to settle illegally," the TRF said.