The Raj Thackeray led MNS had previously asked Sami to leave India. PHOTO: FILE
MUMBAI: Pakistani musician Adnan Sami, who had adopted India as his second home, was given notice by the Mumbai police to leave India as his visa had expired, Express News reported on Tuesday.
Earlier, on October 12 Adnan Sami was asked to leave the country following expiry of his visa by the film wing of the extremist Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Chitrapat Karmachari Sena (MNS), Press Trust of India had reported.
"Sami met us at our office here today, seeking our cooperation. We told him to leave the country as his visa has expired," MNS film wing president Amey Khopkar had said.
"We told Sami that our priority would be our artistes," Khopkar had told PTI.
Sami had reportedly told a family court that he had a Pakistani passport and was residing in India on the basis of visa granted to him from time to time. His visa was reportedly valid from September 26, 2012 till October 6, 2013.
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COMMENTS (78)
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As a Pakistani, I think sami should be kicked out or thrown in jail. it is illegal to overtsya your visa.
Also, he should not be allowed back into Pakistan as he is not welcome there either.
Mr. Sami is staying in India on an visa that expired. What do brotherly Muslim nations like Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait do to Pakistanis (and Indians) Muslims when they break the Visa regulations of those countries. They hunt them down like dogs (I am witness to this), incarcerate them and deport them without even a chance to collect their rightful dues from employers. India has has at least not incarcerated Mr. Sami. India is doing exactly what many Muslims countries do to Pakistanis (and Indians and a whole lot of people from poor countries). So stop complaining. We really don't need Sami or any Pakistani here in India.
Adnan Sami is not a Pakistani and should return to Dubai. What is he doing in a crappy country like India anyway ?
To all pakistanis who are still is in India please get out from India.
@Ayesha Minhas is correct. Why should anyone in Pakistan care about Mr. Sami once he declared his avowed intention to no longer be a Pakistani. Justice would be served if Pakistan and india acted in concert with Pakistan cancelling his passport and his citizenship India should kick him out and I wish they would humiliate him in public. Jail and then a fine and and confiscation of his assets would be a good start prior to putting him on a plane to Syria; thoughts?
Teri oochi shaan hai maula, visa mera renew karra de
Thaali ka began, not welcome in Pakistan, stay with the stranded Pakistanis in West Bengal
so beggars also need VISA
Sami! Welcome back to your home country, Pakistan. We should not forget what shahid afridi said about Indians...
Would those screaming 'foul' have screamed as loudly if Adnan had been asked by the US Govt. to leave US territory if his US visa had expired?
Look at it from the Pakistani perspective.
A. OBL lived in Abbottabad for years. Did Pakistan ever ask any Visa related questions?
B. As we speak NWA and Quetta are full of foreigners without a Visa. Do you see Pakistan complain?
C. The Pakistani Constitution says Allah has Sovereignty over the Universe, so why should His followers need a Visa at all?
@Concerned Indian: Oh, I so don't want to say this but asylum in India? You got to be kidding me. Your collapsing economy, corruption, complete lack of security for women, some one needs to be really crazy to request asylum.
I would appreciate a response from knowledgeable Pakistani on the following in case I have erred in my understanding. Thank you:
We are talking of a Person (Adnan) while Pak-authorites did not permit even a Voice (Asha) to enter Pakistan! Adnan Sami & Zeba Bakhtiar acted in a Pak movie Sargam. Only movie that he acted in perhaps. Music was his I think. The songs were originally recorded in Asha Bhosle's voice. However, Pak censors raised objections about an Indian singing in Pak movie & the songs had to be re-recorded for the sake of film-print in voice of Hadiqa Kiyani. CDs I am told still show Asha but movie has Kiyani!! (Do please correct me if I am wrong) Am I then to admire the way Pakistan protects the interests of its Artists first & should MNS consider that a good inspiration to follow? I don't believe India should do that but many would & I can't blame them..
Adnan Sami applied for an Indian nationality long time ago. As he wasn't given this, even due to to his heritage, it is Indian policy to deny anyone with Pakistani decent not to have it easy. However u see it, it is a racist thing.
Don't let him come to Pakistan..Snatch the green passport from him..He does not deserve it.
All the burgers should know that when Imran Khan is not protesting against govt or having fun in UK, he is usually spending his time in India.
Someone ask him how many times he got in to the line to get his Indian visa.
I remember he once said that he was born in Afghanistan (probably the time when he moved to Mumbai), so why not send him back to Kabul instead of Karachi? Any ideas??? =)
so he should leave india. . But please Mr. Sami don't come here. . .thanks (we don't like you)
@Faisal: More Muslims live in India than Pakistan. They practice their religion with complete freedom unlike Pakistan. Have you checked with Hazaras or other shias of late. If I remember correctly they sat with their dead for delays begging for protection and even now they are under constant threat. Jinnah must be turning in his grave after reading your post.
If I was in Pakistan with an expired visa, I would be rotting in adiala jail or worse and not living luxuriously in a Lahore or Islamabad mansion. He has been given a notice and asked to explain why he continues to reside in India with an expired Visa. Where is the question of discrimination. You should be happy that such a huge talent, son of a Pakistani officer, is returning home. Please keep such talent happy at home in Jinah's Pakistan.
ET will not post this I am sure; regardless....
@Scales9: Ummm no one has degraded Adnan Sami or Pakistanis. His visa expired, he had not applied for renewal. HE is being asked to leave the country, regularise his visa status and then return.
@Saim Baig: Yes it is generous India that let him earn milions of dollars which he could not in his own homeland. Your sarcasm is misplaced.
@Syed A. Mateen: You are so funny? In India no one decides what he eats or not. HE lost weight to preserve his own health and is proud of that.
@Mamoon Lodhi: Citizenship is not an entitlement as you seem to believe. Do any of your brotherly gulf countries give citizenship to even the kids born in a Gulf country to Pakistani parents? No.
@Ali: MNS can say whatever it wants. The decision is not theirs to make. IT is that of the Indian immigration which falls under the home ministry.
The IQ level of some of these commentors are lower than Glenn McGrath's batting average....
Cant you get a simple logic??? If you want to legally enter a country,you need to get a visa..The visa has an expiry date and if you are unable to renew it on time,you need to leave that country....
and why was Adnan Sami on the floors of MNS instead of the immigration office???
FYI,this is India not UK where one can enter using tourist visa and stay there indefinitely and when they try to evict you....Cry that you want asylum to save your life and even if that doesnt work out SHout Islamophobia
Anyone who overstays his visa, anywhere in the world, is a violator. How does it become an Indo-Pak issue?
ETBLOGS1987
ET editors : Misleading headline designed to generate hate which does not meet your own comment posting guideline. Given the type of misinformed traffic your headline has generated - pls. allow rebuttal.
@waseem: No one denied extension to him. HE had not even applied for extension. IF the objection was to his religion, is he newly converted? Ho come no one objected in the past 10-15 years that he lived in India?
@Ahmad Khan: How does this show intolerance? Could he have been able to earn enough to buy a multimillion dollar luxury apartment in Mumbai if people were intolerant? Why would Adnan Sami want to continue living in India if people were intolerant towards him? It is he who failed to apply for visa renewal. Are you aware that UK is requiring even tourists from 6 countries (includes India and Pakistan) to post a bond before granting visa to prevent people from overstaying their visa?
@Faisal: What does this have to do with creation of Pakistan? No one in India is asking the 180 million Indian Muslims from leaving. HE is being asked to leave not because he is a Muslim but because his visa has expired and he had not even applied to renew it. You may not be aware that A R Rehman was born a Hindu but converted. This fact did not stop him from reaching the top in a largely Hindu India. No apostasy laws kicked in. Imagine what would have happened if a Muslim had converted to Hinduism in Pakistan?
@Moved On: It is in ' small hearted' Mumbai that he has earned crores not in large hearted Karachi or Lahore. It is in Mumbai that creative people from all over India of any caste and religion who come and work together. In Mumbai local train where over 10 million people travel daily for work, no one knows or cares what the language, religion or caste of the person sitting next to them is. His staying or going does not depend on a popularity poll in Mumbai. Nor does any political party have any say in the matter.
@Rakib: Thank you for giving a unbiased knowledgebale picture.
@Talisman, @Mohammed Abbasi: Thank you for your sanity.
@Ayesha minhas: A citizen always has the right to return to his country. In a democracy people have a right to experess their opinions which maybe unpalatable to majority in a country. That does not result in their citizenship rights geting stripped. I personally do not much care for Arundhati Roy's views I would be the first one to defend her if people tried to stop her from speaking.
@aman ki asha: So would PAkistan alow Indians who do not have a visa to live in Pakistan? The very fact that so many Pakistani nationals are able to work in India and their work is appreciated by ordinary Indians (or else no one would give them work) shows the peaceful intentions. Please read the comment by @Rakib.
Wasim Akram stays in India most months of the year. Veena Malik too has practically made Mumbai her second home. Shoaib Malik released his book, NOT in Pakistan, not in Dubai, not in Saudi Arabia, but in India. The list goes on..
Adnan Sami is one of many artists who find India a lucrative destination.
@Talisman: people like you indeed need in pakistan for better future. appreciate your understanding. thank you so much.
@Ayesha minhas: Just do what Taliban who study Islam do when they hate some one.
@aman ki asha: aman ki asha on full throttle….. where are liberals….see what is India doing…??
Mr Adnan Sani is a Pakistan citizen on some kind of Visa. When his Visa expires, he has to leave. His father Arshad Sami Khan was awarded the Sitara-i-Jurat, Pakistan's highest military medal of honour for bravery – for his actions in aerial combats during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. His father killed many Indians. In spite of what his father did, he has been allowed to stay in India.
I am not at all surprised by the comments made by the Pakistani readers. I distinctly remember the hue and cry raised when Mr Rahat Fateh Ali Khan was caught carrying more foreign currency than is allowed under rules.
Looks like the Pakistani mentality is as follows :(A) they are entitled to a visa or else it violates Aman ki Asha, and (B) they can overstay their visa with impunity or else it violates Aman ki Asha. Seems like disrespecting the law of the land is one quality they bring everywhere they go.
Little wonder that so few countries offer Pakistanis a visa on arrival most especially their beloved Ummah.
No i think people like Adnan sami who leaves their country and Trash their country should never be allowed to come back. He could have gone and made his career but he trashed his country he wanted to give up Pakistani passport n nationality. I hate such clowns . If we want to rise as a nation we should kick such people out. Go be an indian or what ever Adnan Sami but you are not welcomw back . Wish i had the authority I would have never allowed it. Him and that Komal Rizvi who on national Tv said that i am not a Pakistani. Shame on them
Come on guys - this is a 'visa' issue - regardless if they are Indians they are following their laws and I think basically Sami needs to get a proper visa
@waseem: I think Adnan thought MNS office is Immigration office. Why would someone go to a political party office instead of Immigration office to extend the VISA? But Pakistani trolls won't understand that.
Adnan Please don't come Pakistan...Please
@Waseem: Orangi and not Dharavi is Asia's largest slum my friend..
@waseem: It's entirely upto India whether they give him the visa or not...only thing we need to discuss is if he should be allowed to enter in Pakistan given that he had applied for Indian citizenship...
The question is why he left Pakistan, but no one cares that why such a great artist left Pakistan ? Anyone ?
Im a Pakistani. And Im disgusted by all this hate against India! Our people need to learn how to ge tolerant. Reading a book might help too! His visa is expired. He needs to come back and apply again. Whats the big deal? Pls open your minds. God!!
@waseem: (..... this is not the case of Visa expiry, rather the denial of extension to someone who was there about 10/15 years.......)
Denial? Did he apply? Work-Visa renewal is not an automatic process, it has to be applied for..In the Family-court he claimed that he didn't even know what visa he had! Secondly, the issue was initially raised by his ex-wife Sabah Galadari with whom he is entangled in a court case, not by MNS or Police. At stake is a swank multimillion dollar luxury flat that Sami owns in Bombay. If he is sent out of India & loses case ex-parte, his third wife gets kicked out & Galdari gets back the flat! For all one knows she might have bribed MNS to kick up some sensational dust in media for added effect! Finally, when he knew of such complications he should have applied for renewal well in time. An overstay does not mean immediate criminal action or deportation unless the record is bad. A notice is first issued to the person to leave the country & if the response is that he has applied for extension the opinion of immigration is sought & only then any action is contemplated. Unsatisfactory reply would mean deportation. Bureau of Immigration is controlled by Home Ministry, Delhi, not by Thakre of MNS nor by local cops.
@waseem:
"ET would never print my comments, otherwise I would explain the meanining of common sense !!! you most probably had never been out of your Mumbai slum, so would not know that this is not the case of Visa expiry,"
Let me explain Common Sense in even simpler words.
Someone like me who has not gone out of my slum in Mumbai knows that you leave a country once visa expires.
Someone like Adnan Sami who has traveled the world doesn't know that.
Does that explain common sense to you?
Mr.Sami..You shouldn't take advantage of generosity India has extended to you . Being a professional , you should behave professionally and obey law of land . You are a talented person , but our security is much more important than you . Either get your visa extended or leave country asap.
why pakistanis stay in india???
he should be in jail since his visa got expired.
You see why Pakistan was demanded!. Such was to happen to Muslims eventually if they had chosen to stay with India before partition. Hindu psychology...well its never gonna change. They would always be racist, non tolerant to others. I wonder when I see people saying why is this country being created..what good Jinnah did to us. Watch and analyze before saying such crab, whatever happened to Adnan Sami, this could have happened to you also if you had no Pakistan. Respect your freedom, love your country even (as per your view) if its not giving you anything for the time being.
Mumbai is anyways a city full of extremists...be it hindu, muslims or marathi extremists...whole of india knows it....its a city of the small hearted people....ask the rest of india and majority will say that adnan can stay....
This whole story is giving very bed publicity to India. This shows the extent of intolerance in a country which boasts of being more free and tolerant. In fact, Pakistan and India are no different when it comes to real freedom and tolerance. The two countries are competing very well in this area as well.
He has been staying in India for years and now his visa term has been completed and hence being asked to leave. Can you tell me, can an Indian artist survive for so long in Pakistan? By any stretch of imagination.... a big NO. Get a life guys
How come ET is not discussing the sad, untimely death of a Pakistani student in Villawood fruit shop in Sydney. IT should be shown to warn Pakistanis about studying in Sydney or Melbourne how dangerous it is if you live in a crappy poor suburb, not worth it, you can die as attacks are quite violent here. Even some parts of Pakistan are far safer than Australia these days or other western countries.
Wow! On ET I am amazed to read comments of these Pakistan Haters Indians . They find it their national duty to degrade any Pakistani cause. India is big and shinning why do not you polish it somewhere else.
@Waseem:
Dear sir, you still didn't get it, did you? He wasn't asked to leave 'all of a sudden'. His visa had expired and the protocol states that if you do nit get an immediate extension, you've got to. Go back to your country (not Pakistan in Adnan's case. I guess its UK or Canada).It was Adnan who visited MNS office to request help to get his visa extended. Was it that tough to comprehend?
ET: Nationalism aside, how could you allow suvh immature comments? It just trivializes what's already ridiculed globally. Don't you think you ought to guide such misguided folks? Now please allow my comment, it is a civilized clarification unlike some rants you have already allowed.
The caption doesn't says it all. He was denied an extension and he should leave sooner than later. “We told Sami that our priority would be our artistes,” Khopkar had told PTI. If he has some self respect and an iota of self esteem he should leave, ASAP.
Having one Indian origin parent should not be sufficient to grant Indian citizenship. With the coming collapse of Pakistan there will be more asylum requests, hopefully sanity prevails and we don't take in these people.
If there are requests, applications and individuals should be carefully screened. India should take Hindus, Sikhs and Christians.
Hope you publish my comment, this is only a concern for safety.
@Syed A. Mateen: He was ready to eat vegetables and still of leave India.He was literally pleading that he he stay back.How is that for his love of motherland.He has been asked to leave by the police.
@Water Bottle
But, Pakistanis lack common sense, a person without a brain can give a statement like this, how can you give a sweeping statement like this. Pakistan is a nation of 180 million people and believe me after reading this statement of yours i am sure that 99.9% Pakistanis have more common sense than you. Take your meds and sleep, we don't need your opinion here
I am simply enjoying the itching of pseudo-liberals and Indians like Water Bottle. :D Keep on going.
@waseem:
"ET would never print my comments, otherwise I would explain the meanining of common sense !!!
you most probably had never been out of your Mumbai slum, so would not know that this is not the case of Visa expiry, rather the denial of extension to someone who was there about 10/15 years, and all of sudden asked to leave."
OK. Let me explain you the meaning of common sense.
It is something that you don't have.
You leave the country once your visa expires. No matter if this happens after 10 years or 100 years.
Besides, what made you believe that India had given him a 10-15 year visa. He has got visa after visa to stay here in India and I'm sure he had been denied visa or extension before.
@Water Bottle: ET would never print my comments, otherwise I would explain the meanining of common sense !!! you most probably had never been out of your Mumbai slum, so would not know that this is not the case of Visa expiry, rather the denial of extension to someone who was there about 10/15 years, and all of sudden asked to leave.
Is this really a big deal? He's lived in the UK, Canada, and all over the world. Has an Indian mother (Pakistani father) and hasn't really represented Pakistan at all in his music (did a song for Indian team in 2003 world cup).
He isn't a Pakistani to me.
Long time ago four Baluch students asked me to donate for the freedom of Baluchistan. I conceived their demand impudent and outrageous and kicked them out of my flat!
@Syed A. Mateen:
"In India, he was kept on vegetables only."
Good one :)
That's why he started looking like a human being. Previously he looked like a Hippo with an eating disorder.
You should learn from his life and become a vegetarian.
Born in 1969 in London, UK, to a Pakistani Pathan[1] father (Arshad Sami Khan) and an Indian mother (Naureen Khan).
This situation is so stupid that I get hundreds of questions.
The norm is, once your visa expires you return to your country if you don't get an extension.
This is common sense.
But, Pakistanis lack common sense.
Adnan Sami must have traveled to several countries several countries. Shouldn't he have known this?
How can you dare overstay visa?
This stupidity boggle my mind and I stupidity is something I use as a euphamism, because this action is brainless. Utterly stupid.
aman ki asha
Not at all surprised, this was bound to happen with a person who left Pakistan & traveled to India settled there and turned his back to his motherland and his people. Hope he learns the value of motherland after being disgraced by Indian authorities who rejected his citizenship application this year.
He overstayed his VISA limit ... So what do u expect ??? Shower him with flowers ?? and drop on his feet to stay ?? India has rules and there is a rule of law unlike many countries,.... and that's what happens when somebody breaks the rule ...
If his visa has expired then he should leave their country or ask them to renew it. Theres nothing wrong or right about this. Why does the media have to make every news about indo-pak into some sort of drama.
The guy has overstayed he should come back to Pak or ask for an extension. Same thing applies for all other countries no one lets you overstay the designated time, if you do then you are normally banned from coming back.
The only thing that is not right here is the MNS telling him and not the Indian immigration authorities, who should be asking him to renew it or leave.
Shining India!! Very generous of you!!!
Also this is typical of Pakistanis.
They took a country and now they want to leave that country and settle in India.
Where is Shoaib Malik these days? I mostly see him in India, more than he is in Pakistan.
I don't understand, why he was not arrested.
Isn't that the normal protocol for anyone who violates visa?
'Extremist' mumbai police ?
Hehe now the headline is written as if he is thrown out because of being pakistani .
Get a proper visa and enjoy ur stay .
aman ki asha on full throttle..... where are liberals....see what is India doing...?? extending visa is 5 minute procedure.......if you really want to do it.... and the icing on cake.... “We told Sami that our priority would be our artistes,” Khopkar had told PTI. ha ha.....so much for "Nazar main rehtay ho...phir bhi nazar nahin aatay.....!!!!!! 3....2.....1....my comments is deleted....ET be brave and print it... Saanch ko aancch nahin....