India has closed its airspace to all aircraft registered, operated, or leased by Pakistan, including commercial airlines and military flights after a similar move by Islamabad as tensions continued to mount between the nuclear-armed neighbors over last week’s massacre of Indian tourists in Kashmir.
Pakistani carriers had already started avoiding Indian airspace, reportedly due to concerns over possible retaliation following the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, in which gunmen opened fire on civilians, killing 26 tourists.
New Delhi has said militants who killed the tourists were linked to Pakistan, who, it alleges, does not do enough to stop movement of militant across the Line of Control in the disputed Kashmir region. Islamabad and New Delhi control parts of Kashmir, and maintain a heavy military deployment.
As a result of the latest Indian move, Pakistani airlines will be forced to take longer routes through countries such as China or Sri Lanka to reach Southeast Asian destinations like Kuala Lumpur, officials said.
Pakistan earlier shut its airspace to Indian flights on April 24 after India suspended Indus Water Treaty, an agreement that ensures equitable flow of water through rivers flowing downstream from the strategic Kashmir mountains.
The Himalayan region, recognized by the United Nations as dispute, has been the bone of contention between Pakistan and India for more than seven decades.
India also shut the Integrated Check Post at the Attari-Wagah border, and authorities set a deadline for Pakistani nationals who had entered India with valid documents to exit.
Also, all visas issued to Pakistani citizens have been revoked, and travel under the SAARC visa exemption scheme is no longer allowed for Pakistanis.
Islamabad has taken a similar step and asked all Indian visitors to return to their country.
However, expert say, Pakistan stands to lose little from the Indian airspace closure while Indian airlines will lose enormous sums as they would have to navigated much longer routes to the Middle East, Europe and the Americas.
According to reports more than 800 international flights a week operated by Indian carriers are likely to be impacted by longer durations, increased fuel burn, and a few other complexities related to crew and flight scheduling.
Indian airliens regularly overflew Pakistan on their way to various destinations to the west including the Gulf Arab countries, Europe and North America.
Indian forces have launched a massive search operation in Pahalgam as it seeks to hunt the gunmen who perpetrated the April 22 massacres.
In many parts of the country right-wing Hindu nationalists are exploiting last week’s terrorist attack in Kashmir to target Muslims, the largest minority in a country of over one billion people, The New York Times reported.
Pakistani and Indian militaries have also exchanged fire across the Line of Control in Kashmir, one of the most heavily militarized regions in the world.
In several states run by Prime Minister Narenddra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party, local officials have used the moment to hound what they call “illegal Bangladeshis” and Rohingya, the Muslim minority who have fled Myanmar. Such labels, including “Pakistani,” are often used to target Muslim migrants from other parts of India.
Inside Kashmir, security forces have arrested hundreds as they seek the perpetrators of the April 22 attack, and they have blown up the homes of people they have accused of having terrorist affiliations. The sweeps, which has included the detention of 2,000 people according to one official, resemble the collective punishments that the authorities have previously carried out after attacks on security forces in Kashmir.
Meanwhile, as per reports, Kashmiris in other states have also reported harassment and violence, with right-wing groups filming themselves assaulting Kashmiri roadside salesmen and threatening violence if Kashmiris do not leave.
“The attack in Pahalgam was horrible but should not become a pretext to engage in reprisals and attacks on minorities, including arbitrary arrests or summary punishments,” said Meenakshi Ganguly, the deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch.
Prime Minister Modi is reportedly under growing domestic pressure including from the Opposition political parties to take action agaisnt terrorists behind April 22 murders.
