The Kerala High Court has reinforced the principle that the sovereign right to control India’s borders prevails over personal circumstances—even the bonds of marriage. In a judgment delivered on 1 October 2026, Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas dismissed the writ petition of Wayanad resident Unaiz Kadumbottil and his Pakistani wife, who had asked the court to direct the Union government to issue her a short-term tourist visa so she could attend a family wedding in India. The couple argued that Article 14 (equality) and Article 21 (right to life) of the Constitution entitled the wife to enter the country because she was now part of an Indian family. The Centre, however, pointed to its April 2025 order suspending almost all visa services for Pakistani nationals following the Pahalgam terror attack. Citing Section 3 of the Foreigners Act, 1946—under which the executive may regulate or prohibit entry—the government said marriage conferred no “vested right” on a foreigner to enter India. The court agreed, noting that constitutional rights can be invoked only by persons already inside India’s territory; a foreign national abroad must comply with the visa regime in force. For global-mobility managers the ruling is a cautionary tale: spousal or partner relationships do not override geopolitical restrictions, and employees with Pakistani dependants cannot assume that family-reunion or dependent visas will be processed while the 2025 suspension remains. Companies planning short-term assignments to India for staff with Pakistani family members should explore third-country meeting options or remote-work alternatives until policy changes. Practically, the judgment also underscores the need to monitor security-driven policy shifts. Visa suspensions announced as emergency measures can remain in force for years, and courts are unlikely to intervene unless a decision is blatantly arbitrary. Mobility programmes should therefore maintain real-time country-risk trackers and brief assignees on the limits of judicial relief when national-security considerations are involved.
Source: Hindustan Times
