India says Pakistan players can visit for multilateral events but bilateral competitions remain off table

NEW DELHI (Agencies): Pakistani players and teams will be able to participate in multilateral events hosted by India but bilateral events remain off the table, India’s sports ministry has said. India also said the visa process for sportspersons and officials will be simplified, while office bearers of international sports governing bodies will be granted multi-entry visas.  “With regard to international and multilateral events, in India or abroad, we are guided by the ⁠practices of international sports bodies and the interest of our own sportspersons,” the ministry said in a memorandum.  “It is also relevant to take into account India’s emergence as a credible venue to host international sports events.”  “In so far as bilateral sports events in each other’s country are concerned, Indian teams will not be ⁠participating in competitions in Pakistan. Nor will we permit Pakistani teams to play in India,” the ministry added.

The statement comes as India is set to host the Commonwealth Games in 2030, while they have also bid for the 2036 Olympics and the 2038 Asian Games in Ahmedabad. India and Pakistan engaged in a military ⁠conflict last year, and the deterioration of ties reflected in sporting events as well. Although India were co-hosts of the Twenty20 World Cup earlier this year, Pakistan played all their matches in Sri Lanka — including a group ⁠game against India — as part of an arrangement that the two sides agreed on after India refused to play the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy in Pakistan. When the two sides met for the ICC Asia Cup last year — their first meeting since the military conflict in May 2025 — the Indian team refused to shake hands with Pakistan’s players at the toss and after the match. Furthermore, Indian skipper Suryakumar Yadav was said to have “politicised” India’s win in the match by bringing up the Pahalgam attack in occupied Kashmir, saying the victory was “a perfect gift” for his nation. There has also been a long freeze in bilateral cricket between the nuclear-armed neighbours, who have not played a full series since 2012-13 and now ​meet largely ⁠at neutral venues.