Gulzar Khan of Pakistan entered India illicitly in 2011, wed his partner, and kept his true identity a secret from her for the following eight years, until he was apprehended. He is currently awaiting word on whether he will get sent up to Pakistan.
Effective cross-border romances between Indians and Pakistanis are uncommon; relations between the neighbors, who have engaged in three wars since gaining independence in 1947, are uncomfortable. Because of this, it is difficult for people to obtain permits to visit one another.
Some Indians and Pakistanis who crossed the border illegally out of love have gotten into trouble. Some people whose tales have garnered media attention in recent years have attributed their appointment to the internet.
It began with the incorrect variety in the case of Gulzar Khan and Daulat Bi.
Mr. Khan, a painting who was based in Saudi Arabia, claims that in 2009 he attempted to call an ex-colleague in India. He tried changing a decimal here and there when he couldn’t get through, fearing that the man may have written down the wrong amount.
According to Ms. Bi,” One of those strange figures connected him with me.”
She claims that she was a small hesitant to speak with the person. He persisted though.
Mr. Khan claims that he did inform Ms. Bi on the first visit that his name was Punjabi, but that the caller in Pakistan was not clear. Additionally, he kept his religion a secret; for years, even after their wedding, Ms. Bi believed him to be Muslim like her.
They had regular telephone conversations for the following two years.
Ms. Bi, a childless wife, claims that if she spoke to him, her neighbors and family would make fun of her.
She says,” I used to tell him that it’s better that I die.” But he made a commitment to visit and wed her.
Mr. Khan asserts that he made numerous fruitless attempts to obtain a legitimate immigration from the Saudi Arabian American embassy.
Lastly, he made the decision to pose as an Indian national. He claims,” I told[ authorities ] that I lost my passport, I was an Indian, and I wanted to return to India ,” and he then displays an identity card to them that features a black-and-white image of an identical-looking Indian man.
He claims that after being detained and receiving an incident document, he was sent to India. The American embassy in Saudi Arabia has been contacted by the BBC for opinion.
In January 2011, Mr. Khan arrived in Hyderabad, India. A few weeks later, the couple got married and moved to Ms. Bi’s town in the Andhra Pradesh city of Nandyal. The local officers questioned him when he arrived, but no circumstance was reported.
The two cohabited for the following eight times and had four more kids, with Mr. Khan earning a living by painting. He claims to have applied for and received an Aadhaar biometric bill as well as other identification documents.
Mr. Khan claims that during this period, he severed all ties with his home in Pakistan. Yet his brother traveled to Saudi Arabia to learn what had happened to him.
His girlfriend Sheela Lal, who resides in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, told BBC Urdu,” We thought he might have had an incident.”
According to Mr. Khan,” As I lived with my fresh home, I started thinking of myself as an Indian.” However, he claims that soon his thoughts of home came flooding back, leading him to make the decision to return to Pakistan.
He was detained in 2019 while attempting to flee India with Ms. Bi and their babies in Telangana, a neighboring Hindu state, and charged with obtaining forged documents and unlawful entry.
News reports claimed that intelligence services had followed Mr. Khan’s names to Pakistan. The unique research team from the Hyderabad police, which is looking into Mr. Khan’s case, declined to comment when the BBC asked for it.
Ms. Bi suddenly learned that Mr. Khan was a Christian from Pakistan when he was arrested. She claimed,” I fought with the law, claiming he is from Punjab.” Therefore they informed me that he is from Pakistan and that there is a Punjab there as well.
The truth, according to Ms. Bi, first shocked her, but she has since come to terms with it. How does it issue at this point? She queries.
She asked the people for assistance after Mr. Khan was arrested and raised money for his legal costs. In 2020, he was granted parole by a native judge, and the issue of whether to deport him is currently being heard.
After the Telangana authorities issued an order to apprehend what they called” illegal workers” in the position in February 2022, Mr. Khan was once more detained.
The state’s high court therefore issued an order releasing him until the outcome of his imprisonment case.
Mr. Khan acknowledges that he is a Muslim member who pretended to be an American but does not refute the accusations made against him. ” I received what I deserved.” He told the BBC,” I have no problems.
The pair is currently awaiting the judge’s decision to determine whether they can remain in Pakistan or India together.
Ms. Bi says,” I only hope it all works out.”
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