'Write-ups against PM Modi, Sexual Favours for Visa': Punjab Professor's Horrific Run-in with Pak Diplomats

(News Agency) Two Pakistan High Commission officials in Delhi have been accused by a woman from Punjab of harassing her mentally and asking for sexual favours in exchange for a quick visa to visit Pakistan. The woman, who is a senior professor at a state university in Punjab, wanted to visit Pakistan where she was invited as a speaker by a varsity. In an exclusive conversation with CNN-News18, the woman who did not wish to be named, revealed some shocking and bizarre details of her ordeal with two senior officials of the Pakistani High Commission in Delhi. In March 2022, the professor was invited by a university in Pakistan to deliver a lecture.“I wanted to visit the Gurudwara Sahib and the monuments there. I wanted to deliver a lecture there. I was told Imran Khan is facing a no-confidence motion and the government is not stable. I was told to come in May after Eid. I was at the security check near the gate. I met another official there who said I can easily get a visa. I told him that I was asked to come in May, but he said he would give me a visa. I asked him to process my application,” the woman said. Everything looked normal till this point. However, the meeting assuring an early approval of the visa soon drifted as the men allegedly sought favours from the woman. She was asked to wait for some time. “Half an hour later, I was taken to another room. I was asked general questions about my application. I am a government employee. I had taken an NOC (no-objection certificate). I was told to wait for a visa officer, but the official continued the conversation. He asked me if I was married. I said I was not. He then asked me about my sex life. I found that uncomfortable. I thought he was a pervert and I ignored his questions. He then grabbed my hand. I stood up and told him to call the visa officer or let me go. He told me to wait,” she said.The official continued unfazed and went on explaining to her about some Muslim sect which allows a brief marriage just for sex, said the woman. He asked her if extramarital relationships were allowed in her faith, and also boasted that he could marry as many women as he wanted. “I kept ignoring what he was saying. I just wanted my visa application processed. He held my hand again. I got up and told him I wanted to leave,” said the woman. After these sexual overtures were rejected by the woman, the High Commission official started talking about Khalistan and told her how “minorities are being oppressed in India”. The woman said, “I told him we are happy in India; we are not oppressed. I told him we do not want Khalistan. He said Pakistan will form Khalistan before the Kashmir Resolution. He then got up and left. Then another official came. He asked me similar questions. His name is Tahir Abbas. The previous official’s name is Asif. They said it was not right to live without a man. To this, I did not reply.”One of the officials also insisted that the woman should change her sponsor’s name for the visa and that he was willing to recommend her name for early approval of her visa application. “They told me that they could give me a visa, but they will have to sponsor me. I questioned them. I was being sponsored by a well-known Pakistani academic. They insisted that only their sponsorship could ensure a visa. I refused. They said the paperwork does not matter. I said I did not want to link my name to a Pakistani diplomat. They said it was not possible. After this, I left the embassy,” she said.