Indian Woman Who Married Pakistani Friend Returns To India, Here's Why

Anju, a 34-year-old Indian mother of two children, legally travelled to Pakistan and married her 29-year-old Pakistani Facebook friend, Nasrullah, after converting to Islam. The couple, who had been friends on Facebook since 2019, tied the knot in a local court under the supervision of a district and sessions judge. Anju had been staying at Nasrullah's home before their marriage. In August, Pakistan extended her visa by a year.

However, Anju is set to return home after clearance from the Pakistani government, her Pakistani husband said. 

"We are waiting for the NOC (No-Objection Certificate) from the interior ministry in Islamabad for which we have already applied. The process is a bit lengthy and takes time," Nasrullah told news agency Press Trust of India.

He added that as soon as the documents are completed for her travel across the Wagah Border, Anju will travel to India to meet her children.

"She will certainly come back as Pakistan is her home now," he added.

Anju who changed her name to Fatima after marrying Nasrullah, was earlier married to Arvind. They have two children, a 15-year-old daughter and a six-year-old son. Last month, Nasrullah had said Anju was ‘mentally disturbed and was badly missing’ her two children. 

A case similar to that of Seema Haider is drawing the media's attention. Anju, a married woman from Rajasthan, travelled to Pakistan to meet Nasrullah, a man she became friends with on Facebook. She claims they are in love and, therefore, reached his country to get together with him. The couple got married in a local court presided over by a district and sessions judge.

Rajasthan Woman Travels to Pakistan for Love

Anju, a resident of the Bhiwadi area of Rajasthan, travelled to the upper Dir district of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to meet Nasrullah. The two had come in contact with each other a few months back. Anju left the country on Thursday, after telling her husband, Arvind, that she was going to meet a friend in Jaipur and would be back in a few days. She was in contact with her husband via WhatsApp. On Sunday afternoon around 4 PM, she gave him a call and informed him that she was in Lahore and would be back in two to three days.

Initially detained by authorities, the Indian woman was later released after her travel documents were confirmed. To guarantee that no unpleasant incident occurs, protection is given to both Nasrullah and Anju. However, it is still unclear, whether the Indian woman has crossed the borders to marry Nasrullah or just meet him.

According to reports, Rajasthan police continued their investigation and discovered that Anju and Arvind have been married since 2007, and have two children together. Her husband also claimed that he had no idea about his wife’s contact with a man from Pakistan. However, he told that his wife had got her passport made in 2020 as she wanted to apply for a job abroad.

In the latest update, Anju recently spoke to Aaj Tak and India Today about her whereabouts. She claimed that her story is nothing like Seema Haider's and that she plans on returning to India. 

People have been drawing both similarities and dissimilarities between the cases of Seema Haider and Anju. Both women crossed the borders of the countries for love. Haider fell in love with an Indian man while playing PUBG, while Anju fell in love with a man from Pakistan via Facebook. However, there’s one important difference that cannot be overlooked; Haider sneaked into the country illegally, whereas Anju travelled to Pakistan legally via the Wagah-Attari border. Reports also claim that Anju was planning to visit the neighbouring country for a long time. She applied for her visit on June 12. The police of both countries are investigating the cases from their sides.

In another recent incident, a Polish woman named recently travelled a great distance to marry her Indian friend she met on social media. She ultimately got together with her Indian partner after obtaining a five-year visa.

Suggested Reading: 5 Women Who Crossed Indian Border To Meet Their Lovers