more-inPakistan on Saturday said India has rejected the visa applications of 192 Pakistani Zaireen who were scheduled to reach Delhi to participate in the Urs of Hazrat Khawaja Nizamuddin Aulia (RA) from January 1-8, 2018. The visit was to take place under the provisions of the 1974 Pakistan-India Protocol on ‘Visits to Religious Shrines’ and is a regular, annual feature. "As a result of this Indian decision, the Pakistani Zaireen would be deprived of the opportunity to participate in the Urs, which is of special significance. This is unfortunate and runs counter to the letter and spirit of the 1974 Protocol and objective of people-to-people contacts," the Foreign Office (FO) said in a statement. It is ironic that this was done on the occasion of Urs of Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya who was a symbol of bringing communities closer to each other," the FO said in a statement.

Source: The Hindu December 30, 2017 08:28 UTC