DEHRADUN: The Uttarakhand High Court has granted the state government four weeks to file its response in a petition filed by a Pakistani Sikh national, Manjit Singh, challenging an order that directed him and his family to leave India within 24 hours.
Singh, who has been living in Dehradun’s Vasant Vihar area since 2019 on a long-term visa, moved to the High Court after the state authorities issued him a notice asking him to leave the country.
The matter was heard on Tuesday by a single bench of senior Justice Manoj Kumar Tiwari.
During the hearing, the state government sought additional time to conduct further verification and place its stand before the court. Accepting the request, the court directed the government to file its reply within four weeks and fixed August 11 as the next date of hearing.
The court also extended the interim protection granted earlier, observing that the restriction on deportation would continue till the next hearing, provided there was no material to suggest any threat to national security.
According to the petition, Singh, a resident of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in Pakistan, came to India with his family in 2019 on a long-term visa. He claimed that his visa was subsequently extended and that its validity had not expired.
The petition stated that he had secured extensions, with the visa allegedly valid till December 2026.
Singh told the court that his family had settled in Dehradun and that his children were pursuing their studies.
“My elder daughter is studying BTech, my second daughter is pursuing BDS, and my son is still young. We should be allowed to remain in India till the validity of the visa,” the petition stated.
The deportation notice was reportedly issued on May 31 and served on Singh on June 2.
He then approached the Nainital High Court, challenging the order as arbitrary and premature. Opposing the plea, the state government submitted that the family was residing in an area where the headquarters of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police is also located.
The state argued that the presence of a Pakistani national in the vicinity could raise security concerns and that he should be sent back to Pakistan.
The case comes at a time when several Hindu and Sikh refugees from Pakistan and Afghanistan have been granted Indian citizenship under the Citizenship Amendment Act.
In Uttarakhand, officials say 153 Hindu and Sikh refugees from the two countries have received Indian citizenship since the implementation of the law, while several applications are still under verification in Dehradun.
A Local Intelligence Unit official told TNIE, “A long-term visa allows a foreign national to stay in another country for an extended period. Its validity can be renewed from time to time, subject to scrutiny.”
The officer added that such visas are generally sought by students, professionals, businesspersons, and those wishing to live with family members settled abroad.
