New Delhi: India has withdrawn the visa issued to prominent Uyghur dissident, Dolkun Isa. New Delhi's decision to give visa to Isa to visit Dharamsala was seen as a snub to Beijing after it blocked India's bid at the United Nations (UN) to get Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar designated as a terrorist.
While the Ministry of Home Affairs confirmed that Isa's visa has been withdrawn, immigration sources added that the decision was not taken under Chinese pressure.
Isa, too, confirmed that his visa had been withdrawn. "I express my disappointment on Indian authorities cancelling my visa to attend the annual Interethnic Interfaith Leadership Conference taking place in Dharamsala," he said.
Sources claimed that there is a Red Corner Notice by the Interpol against Isa which was not detected at the time of grant of e-visa to him. But soon after the Red Corner Notice was found, Isa's visa was withdrawn on April 23.
The Uyghur leader had been given a tourist visa to attend a conference organised by a US-based organisation in Dharamsala, the seat of the Tibetan government-in-exile, in Himachal Pradesh. The conference from April 28 to May 1 will discuss democratic transformation in China.
Soon after Isa was granted visa by India, a Chinese Foreign Ministry statement said he is a terrorist and must be brought to justice. China does not recognise the Tibetan government-in-exile and has been very critical of India's stand on Dalai Lama.
Xinjiang, which has over 10 million Uyghur population of Turkik origin Muslims, was on the boil for several years over Uyghur protests against the large-scale settlements of Hans from different part of the country.
China blames East Turkistan Islamic Movement (ETIM), a militant Islamist group, for terrorist attacks in Xinjiang and other parts of the country.
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