‘Stapled Chinese visas not acceptable to travel out’: Indian foreign ministry

[Naveed Yaseen]

By Iftikhar Gilani
NEW DELHI: Any paper visa, stapled to the passport on separate sheets rather than pasted, will be treated as invalid for travel out of the country, India said on Thursday.

“It has come to the attention of the government that the Chinese embassy here (New Delhi) and its consulates in Mumbai and Kolkata are issuing visas on a separate piece of paper stapled to the passport to certain categories of Indian nationals on the basis of their domicile, ethnicity and/or place of issue of the passport... Such stapled visas are not considered valid for travel out of the country,” the Indian Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement.

The snub came in the wake of reports that some Kashmiri students and businessmen were given visas by the Chinese embassy on a separate piece of paper, stapled to the passport. Immigration officials at the airport denied permission to such travellers to fly out. The ministry also asked its citizens to ascertain from the Chinese embassy or consulate whether the visa issued to them would be affixed to the passport or would be in the nature of a stapled paper visa to avoid any inconvenience or financial loss.

“All Indian citizens intending to travel to the People’s Republic of China are advised that before making any travel arrangements, they should first ascertain from the Chinese embassy or consulate, as the case may be, whether the visa being issued to them will be affixed...” the ministry said. Chinese embassy officials in New Delhi have been maintaining that stapling of the visas on a separate piece of paper was a “usual practice” for last few years and the problem was from the side of Indian immigration officials at the airport.

The Chinese Embassy’s practice of stamping visas to some Kashmiris on a separate sheet of paper instead of passports was seen as a new front in needling it, evoking a strong reaction from India. The visas were stamped on separate papers, as was the practice for those hailing from Arunachal Pradesh. Upset over the development, India had said, “It is our considered view and position that there should be no discrimination against visa applicants of Indian nationality on the grounds of domicile or ethnicity.”

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp...009_pg7_45