Traders deported from Russia reach Pakistan, many still stranded

A majority of Pakistani traders, deported from Russia, have reached Pakistan but more than 20 Pakistanis are still stuck at Dubai airport and 18 at Istanbul airport. Yesterday, Russian authorities detained at least 130 Pakistanis at Moscow airport without giving any reason despite the fact that they had valid travel documents. On Thursday, 48 deported Pakistanis had been sent to Istanbul, Turkey.

Thirty Pakistani traders arrived early morning at Islamabad on Friday from Istanbul via flight TK 740 of the Turkish Airlines. More than 80 deported Pakistani traders reached Pakistani on Friday morning. Talking to media, they showed their valid visas for Russia and said they don't know the reason why Moscow deported them.

Also read: Russia deports 84 Pakistanis, over 100 stranded

"There was a language barrier as we don't understand their language but even then Russian authorities didn't try to talk to us. We didn't go there for work as it was a business trip but they didn't listen to us," traders told local media in Pakistan.

Off the 130 businessmen, 80 were from Karachi, 35 from Lahore and remaining from Islamabad and its neighbourhood areas.

Initially, 48 Pakistani passengers were deported to Istanbul. Later-on the remaining stranded Pakistanis were deported through Emirates flight from Moscow Domodedovo Airport to Dubai.

Twenty-five Pakistanis are still at Dubai airport and they are expected to reach Pakistan today. Karachi-based mobile phone distributor Muller & Phipps (M&P) sent its vendors on a week's recreational tour to Moscow after they achieved their sales targets. A majority of these Pakistanis got their visa from Russian Consulate in Karachi.

"We have spoken to Russian Consulate in Karachi and they said Pakistanis stranded in Moscow had been given valid visa for Russia from them," Tauqir Raza Shah, head of Administration and Security for Muller & Phipps, told this scribe over phone from Karachi.

"I believe there is no reason to deport them as they have valid travel documents," Shah said. There are also around seven people from M&P staff, he informed. "Earlier this year, we sent a couple of people to Moscow for a recreational tour and they returned happily," he informed. This happened for the first time, he added.

Every year M&P send target achievers to different countries as sales incentives and this trip was also the same, he said. Established in 1912, M&P is one of the leading distributors in Pakistan.

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