- By Kamakshi Bishnoi
- Mon, 24 Aug 2026 02:20 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
- 150 Pakistani Sindhi brides reached India for weddings.
- Traveled by air via transit countries, not Wagah-Attari.
- Operation Sindoor led to border closure, visa curbs.
For years, Sindhi families in Pakistan were able to arrange marriages in India, with brides and their relatives travelling through the Wagah-Attari border. But after India launched Operation Sindoor, the route was shut, and visa approvals for Pakistani visitors were restricted, leaving the wedding plans of around 150 women in limbo.
Engaged to men in India, the women were waiting to travel to their marital homes. Eventually, special exemptions from the Home Ministry opened an alternative route. The brides travelled by connecting flights through Muscat, Colombo, Dhaka, Dubai and Qatar, reaching cities including Nagpur, Jodhpur, Ahmedabad, Raipur, Pune and Bhopal, PTI reported.
Pakistani Brides Find A Way To India
With the land border closed, the women and their relatives had to travel by air. Between April and June this year, around 150 brides accompanied by nearly 450 relatives reached India for their weddings. The relatives, however, were required to return within a stipulated period.
“The long wait is over, finally,” said Rajesh Jhambia, a Nagpur-based community leader, on Sunday.
The process gained momentum after the Sindhi community approached Sant Yudhishtirlal Shadaani, spiritual head of Shadaani Darbar in Raipur. A list of women engaged to men in India was prepared and submitted to the Ministry of Home Affairs.
“There were about 150 brides who were to be married in Nagpur, Raipur, Jodhpur, Pune and other cities in India,” Jhambia said.
The Centre subsequently allowed the brides and their families to travel to India, with air travel being the only permitted route.
“The brides and their kin have arrived in India through transit routes via Muscat, Dubai, Sri Lanka and other countries,” Jhambia, who works with Sindhi migrants from Pakistan, told PTI.
What Changed After Operation Sindoor?
Jhambia said the Sindhi community had traditionally used the Wagah-Attari crossing for such weddings, but the situation changed after the military operation.
“Everything changed after Operation Sindoor, as the government rejected visas to all those who were planning to visit the country via the Attari route,” he said.
Operation Sindoor was launched by India in 2025 following the Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir, which killed 26 civilians.
Since April, 15 of the cases have been from Nagpur, Jhambia said. However, the demand for such visas continues. He added that nearly 300 more women in Pakistan are waiting to travel to India and that the community has requested the government to facilitate their visas as well.
(With PTI Inputs)
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