An audio recording of Sarabjit Kaur, a Sikh woman from Punjab who stayed back in Pakistan after a religious pilgrimage, has surfaced on social media days after reports of her possible return to India failed to materialise. In the audio, shared on X, Sarabjit is heard crying and pleading to be taken back home while speaking to her former husband.
In the recording, she says she had gone to Pakistan only to get her photographs removed, which she claims were in the possession of a Pakistani man, Nasir Hussain. Her emotional appeal has once again drawn attention to her case, which has turned into a sensitive cross-border issue involving visa rules, conversion, marriage and security concerns.
Sarabjit Kaur, 48, travelled to Pakistan in November 2025 as part of a Sikh jatha to mark the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev at Nankana Sahib. While the rest of the pilgrims returned to India on November 13, she stayed back. During her time in Pakistan, she converted to Islam, married Nasir Hussain in Lahore and began using the name Noor Hussain.
Her single-entry visa expired on November 13, the same day the jatha returned to India. Pakistani authorities arrested her on January 4 for overstaying her visa. She also filed a petition in Pakistan seeking citizenship and protection, claiming that her life would be in danger if she returned to India. However, Pakistani officials have maintained that deportation is the only legal option due to the visa violation.
Earlier, strong rumours circulated on January 6 and 7 that Sarabjit would be deported to India, but no such move took place. She remains in the custody of Pakistani authorities and is currently lodged at a shelter home in Lahore.
Her husband in India, Karnail Singh, has alleged that Sarabjit was blackmailed and coerced by Nasir Hussain. Speaking to CNN News18, he claimed that Hussain contacted her through social media and later used private photos and videos to threaten her. “He sent those pictures to me and to her family members. She was trapped and terrified,” Singh said.
Singh also claimed that Sarabjit was forced to convert to Islam and marry at gunpoint. “Everything was done under threat. She never did this willingly,” he said, adding that her health has deteriorated and she remains under extreme mental stress. “She keeps crying and asking me to bring her back. I have recordings of her begging for help,” he said.
Pakistani police had earlier stated that Sarabjit married Nasir Hussain a day after arriving in Pakistan and converted of her own free will. A police official had said she had approached the Lahore High Court alleging harassment, after which the court directed the police not to trouble the couple. However, her expired visa continued to remain a legal violation.
The case has raised serious questions about background verification and monitoring of cross-border religious pilgrimages. Officials on both sides are now examining how she cleared police verification and how gaps appeared in entry and exit records.
Sarabjit is expected to be handed over to Indian authorities at the Attari Wagah border once deportation formalities are completed. Indian agencies are likely to question her regarding her travel, visa misuse and the circumstances of her stay in Pakistan.
