The Indian High Commission in Islamabad announced on Monday that its diplomat Dr. Satyanjal Pandey has assumed charge as the country’s new chargé d’affaires in Pakistan, amid strained ties between the two nuclear-armed neighbors.
Pandey takes over from former Indian chargé d’affaires Geetika Srivastava, who was appointed to the post in August 2023. The Indian High Commission in Islamabad is the diplomatic representation India in Pakistan and serves as the official channel of India in Pakistan for diplomatic and official relations and interaction between the two countries.
“Dr. Satyanjal Pandey assumed charge of Charge d’ Affaires in High Commission of India, Islamabad on 01 August 2026,” the Indian High Commission in Islamabad wrote on social media platform X.
According to his LinkedIn profile, Pandey has served as a regional passport officer in India from July 2018 to 2026. His profile states that he has also worked with the Indian Ministry of External Affairs for the past 18 years.
His appointment comes at a time when relations between the two South Asian countries are strained. Pakistan and India fought each other in May 2025 after New Delhi blamed Islamabad for supporting a militant attack in Indian-administered Kashmir. Pakistan denied the allegation and sought an international probe into the attack.
The two neighbors frequently level allegations at each other of supporting militant attacks in their respective countries. They have fought two out of three wars since 1947 over the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir. Both claim the territory in full but administer parts of it.
