I Don’t Want to Go to Seema Haider, Let Me Stay Here: Seema Haider

Seema Haider, who made national headlines in 2023 after crossing into India illegally to marry her Indian partner Sachin Meena, has appealed for permission to stay in the country as visa services for Pakistani nationals are suspended following the Pahalgam terror attack.

Haider, originally from Sindh province in Pakistan and already married there, entered India via Nepal with her four children. She later converted to Hinduism after marrying Meena, a resident of Uttar Pradesh.

In a video circulating on social media, Haider pleaded with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to allow her to remain in India, saying, “I do not want to go to Pakistan. I am now India’s daughter-in-law.”

Her lawyer, Advocate A.P. Singh, expressed optimism that Haider would be permitted to stay, arguing that she is no longer a Pakistani citizen. “Seema has married an Indian national, Sachin Meena, and recently gave birth to their daughter, Bharti Meena. Her citizenship is now tied to her Indian husband, and thus, the Centre’s recent directive should not impact her,” Singh told PTI on Thursday (April 24, 2025).

The Indian government, after a high-level Cabinet Committee on Security meeting chaired by Prime Minister Modi on Wednesday (April 23, 2025), announced the suspension of visa services for Pakistani nationals. Additionally, all existing visas will be revoked effective April 27, 2025, with medical visas remaining valid until April 29, 2025. Pakistani citizens currently in India have been directed to exit before their visas expire.

Haider, who reportedly met Meena while playing an online game in 2019, left Karachi in May 2023 and was found living with him in Rabupura, Uttar Pradesh, in July. The couple now resides in Greater Noida.