Pahalgam terror attack: Amit Shah instructs CMs to identify, send Pakistani citizens back; UP govt springs into action -- Top points to know

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Friday issued directions to to cancel all visas issued to Pakistani citizens. The directions were given to the chief ministers of all states at a meeting chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah. 

The meeting came days after a terror attack gripped Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam on April 22, which claimed the lives of 26 people. Lashkar-e-Taiba's (LeT) proxy outfit The Resistance Front (TRF) has taken the responsibility for the attack.

Following the attack, India has taken stringent diplomatic measures including the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) and the expulsion of Pakistani military attaches from the country. 

Pahalgam terror attacks: Points to know so far

1. In this meeting, all the chief ministers were asked to immediately identify all Pakistani nationals in their respective states and take steps to cancel their visas and ensure their prompt return, India Today reported citing sources.
2. The Uttar Pradesh government has given instructions to immediately send back people, who came here from Pakistan either on a tourist or a medical visa, after the Pahalgam attack, as per Central Lucknow DCP.
3. He added that no directions, however, have been issued with regards to the long-term visa holders. Hotels and dharamshalas across the state have been instructed to thoroughly check the IDs of the people staying there and if there is any suspicious information, they should immediately inform the police. 
4. Karnataka Home Minister Dr G Parameshwara said that strict action needs to be taken against those people who are living illegally in India. 
5. "Strict action should be taken against the terrorists. We have to keep an eye on those who are living here illegally. They all should be sent back. The central government's Intelligence officials are also in Bengaluru," Dr Parameshwara said. 
6. Jammu and Kashmir L-G Manoj Sinha asked the Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi to take effective steps to bring those responsible for the Pahalgam attack to justice and intensify efforts to crush the terror infrastructure and ecosystem, as per a statement by the Raj Bhavan. 
7. The meeting between Sinha, General Dwivedi, and other top army officials lasted for more than an hour. 
8. "Every perpetrator and supporter of Pahalgam terror attack, whatever his location or affiliation, must be hunted and they must pay the heavy price for the cowardly and dastardly act against our citizens," he told the top army officials.
9. Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, arrived in Kashmir on Friday to meet those injured in the Pahalgam massacre. He will likely visit the Army's Base Hospital in the Badamibagh Cantonment to enquire about the health of those injured. 
10. He is also likely to have individual meetings with J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and L-G Manoj Sinha. He will also meet various delegations, including from the Congress, and trade and tourism sectors. 
11. Singer Arijit Singh said in his Instagram story that his upcoming concert in Chennai stands cancelled as a mark of respect and solidarity with the victims of the Pahalgam massacre. Singh's concert was scheduled to take place on April 27 in Chennai.