The Indian government’s refusal of visa to former Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf was chiefly meant to avoid convergence of elements opposed to Pakistan on its soil, well-informed diplomatic circles in Islamabad said.
Musharraf had been invited to a seminar to be held in New Delhi on Saturday by Young Presidents’ Organisation, an international panel of business leaders.
The sources said India had reservations about Musharraf’s visit because he could make anti-India statements and efforts by his supporters in Pakistan to plan and join political activities other than the scheduled ones.
Some lawyers and leaders of All Pakistan Muslim League, the party launched by Musharraf in London a couple of months ago, had submitted visa applications with the Indian embassy in Islamabad, giving various reasons for their proposed visit around the time the dictator was scheduled to be here.
The diplomatic circles said the visa-seekers could not satisfy the embassy officials why a sudden visit to almost the same cities Musharraf would travel to and during the same period.
One of the visa applicants, Chaudhry Fawad Ahmed, admitted the group had plans to hold meetings with their party chief in India, currently living in self-exile in Britain.
Musharraf had recently said India was responsible for creating unrest in Balochistan and the authorities had “solid evidence” in this regard. He claimed that the involvement of India and Afghanistan in Balochistan was creating unrest in the province.
In a statement issued following the refusal of the visa, the former army dictator said the Indian government’s conduct was unfortunate and against the spirit of peace and neighbourly relations between the two countries. It appeared India was scared of his stance on Kashmir and his criticism of its policies on minorities, he added.
