Daily Times

India’s revocation of visas of thousands of Afghan students studying in or enrolled at Indian universities has not only put the future of Afghan youth at stake but also created a diplomatic strife between the two countries.

In a move being termed as ‘a stab in the back’, out of an estimated 14,000 Afghan students currently enrolled in 73 Indian universities, about 2,500 have been restrained from returning to India who are desperate to continue their higher education.

Under the garb of ‘security’, New Delhi, which once portrayed itself to be the biggest sympathiser of Afghanistan, has revoked all pre-existing visas issued to Afghan citizens, and announced a new ‘Emergency e-visa’ process. However, of the tens of thousands of applications that were received last year, e-visas have only been issued to less than 300 Afghans, most of them Hindus and Sikhs fleeing the Taliban rule in Afghanistan.

During the COVID-19 pandemic and the related lockdowns, Indian universities held classes online. Afghan students studying In India flew back to their home country. With Indian universities resuming on-campus classes, Afghan students enrolled here have been denied visas to resume studies.

The denial of visas has sent a wave of anger and uncertainty among the Afghan students as well as their government and also prompted formal protest by Afghan Ambassador in New Delhi. Several demonstrations have been held outside the Indian Embassy in Kabul by the affected Afghan students.

Another aspect of this ordeal is a humiliating treatment of Afghan students studying at Indian universities. Afghan students enrolled in India claim that authorities in universities often accuse them of being potential drug peddlers and terrorists. Afghanistan’s Ambassador to India Farid Mamundzay has strongly reacted to New Delhi’s concerns about security wherein he said that “no Afghan citizen has ever carried out any major terror attack in another country, so these students should not be unnecessarily suspected on security grounds”. “We have not received any convincing reason from New Delhi so far as to why the visas to Afghan students, who were pursuing studies in India, have not been given,” Mamundzay tols a gathering recently.

In addition to repression at home, drained finances and visa woes, Afghan students face the apathy of Indian universities. Although Afghan students have paid their dues, international student facilitation cells at various Indian universities have cut contacts with the Afghan students.

Ironically, India has granted 950 scholarships for the upcoming 2022-23 session to only those Afghan students who are already in India for studies, Afghan refugees from 1996-2001 or those Afghans who came to India before August 2021.

After the regime change, India was among the most eager nations that closed their missions in Afghanistan, suspended flights between New Delhi and Kabul, and halted bank payments to the Afghan government.

External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar has claimed that nobody can doubt India’s feelings for Afghan people. He says visa issuance will restart once certain level of trust and efficiency is achieved with Afghanistan, which speak volumes of Indian hypocrisy.

Adding insult to the injury, recently, Afghanistan cricketer Asghar Afghan’s Indian visa was delayed just because his passport had been stamped with Pakistani visa and his family members also live there.

Contrary to this, Pakistan government has granted visas to the Afghanistan squad ahead of September 2021 ODI series in Sri Lanka because they were unable to board flights from their own country due to the Taliban takeover.

While so-called Afghanistan-sympathetic India has revoked Afghan student visas despite knowing that thousands of students are dependent on its universities, Pakistan has offered 4,500 fully-funded scholarships to Afghan students in addition to already existing ones.

The hypocrisy of India on the matter of Indian students raises a very serious question mark as to whether any renewed friendly and humanitarian overtures by Indian towards Afghans in future can be trusted? It is upto Taliban rulers to think about.