India declares Pakistani official ‘persona non grata', orders exit within 24 hours

• Charge d'Affaires issued demarche to this effect.
• Envoy asked to ensure no officials misuse privileges: ministry.
• Development comes amid heightened tensions between nations.

NEW DELHI: The Indian Ministry of External Affairs on Wednesday declared an official of the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi as "persona non grata", ordering the diplomat to leave the country within 24 hours.

“Charge d'Affaires Pakistan High Commission was issued a demarche to this effect today. He was asked to strictly ensure that none of the Pakistani diplomats or officials in India misuse their privileges and status in any manner,” the ministry claimed in a statement.

According to the Indian government, the official was found engaged in "activities deemed incompatible with diplomatic duties".

The development came in the aftermath of recent escalation between the two-nuclear armed countries following an attack that killed 26 men at a tourist destination in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir's (IIOJK) Pahalgam area.

A day after the attack, New Delhi suspended a water-sharing treaty, announced the closure of the main land border crossing with Pakistan, declared military, naval and air advisers in the Pakistani High Commission in New Delhi persona non grata, and withdrew visas for Pakistanis.

In response, Islamabad ordered the expulsion of Indian diplomats and military advisers, cancelling visas for Indian nationals, with the exception of Sikh pilgrims, and closing the main border crossing from its side.

The latest escalation in the decades-old Pakistan-India rivalry began on May 7 when at least 53 individuals, including 13 personnel of the armed forces and 40 civilians including children, were killed in an unprovoked Indian cross-border attack.

During the escalation, India sent drones into Pakistani territory, with the military shooting down nearly 80, including Israeli-made IAI Heron medium-altitude, long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Pakistan also downed six IAF fighter jets, including three Rafales.

Earlier on May 9, India launched multiple missile attacks on Pakistani airbases, including the Nur Khan, Murid, and Shorkot airbases, which were fired from aircraft.

In response, Pakistan's armed forces launched a large-scale retaliatory military action, named "Operation Bunyan-um-Marsoos", and targeted several Indian military targets across multiple regions.

The strikes, described by officials as "precise and proportionate", were carried out in response to India's continued aggression across the Line of Control (LoC) and within Pakistan's territory, which New Delhi claimed were aimed at "terrorist targets".

After at least 87 hours, the war, provoked by India, ended on May 10 with a ceasefire agreement brokered by the United States.