Jodhpur resident Naresh Tewani has been engaged to Priya Bachchani of Karachi, Pakistan, for the last three years. As luck would have it, their wedding date was approaching but there was a delay by the Indian embassy in Pakistan in granting visas to the bride and her family.
The groom's father Kanhaiya Lal Tewani told the Times Of India, "We started preparations accordingly, right from arranging accommodation for them to sending invitation cards. But when there was a delay in obtaining visas, we halted preparations and focused entirely on getting the same issued by the Indian embassy in Pakistan."
With the wedding date of 7 November approaching and the visas nowhere in sight, Naresh sent a tweet to Sushma Swaraj, Minister of External Affairs, imploring her to help his in-laws and would-be bride:
@SushmaSwaraj @ Mam my marriage is on 7th nov.My fiance is from karachi,Pak.Her family did'nt getting the visa.Nw only u r my hope.pls help
— Naresh Tewani (@TewaniNaresh) October 5, 2016
@SushmaSwaraj @narendramodi @MEAIndia Plz hlp me# frm India marriage with Priya frm Pak @ 7 nov Visa issue #IndPakHinduMarriage7Nov
— Naresh Tewani (@TewaniNaresh) October 6, 2016
Not surprisingly, Sushma Swaraj took matters in her own hands to help the families in distress. A day later, the minister tweeted:
आप चिंता न करें. हम वीज़ा दिलवा देंगे. Pl do not worry. We will issue the Visa. pic.twitter.com/yubcZXcQKG https://t.co/8jUPo6VUvi
— Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) October 7, 2016
The family needed 35 visas for the wedding and all were approved after her intervention. Though the visas were approved in two batches, the families aren't complaining.
Priya and her family reached Jodhpur on Sunday.