FAKE ALERT: Visual from Afghanistan shared as Pakistanis trying to flee economic turmoil

CLAIM
A photograph of a huge crowd, with some holding passports, has been circulating on social media with the claim that it shows Pakistanis trying to escape the ongoing economic crisis in the now bankrupt nation.
The photo shows a lot of people donning skull caps, seemingly Muslims, many of them begging with passports in their hands.

Social media users are posting the image with a caption in Hindi that loosely translates to, “If IMF does not give loan to Pakistan, the country will not survive.Now all those who have passports there are trying to run away from the country. There has been a stampede to get a visa to flee abroad. Hats off Modi ji. Without firing a single bullet, you have finished Pakistan sitting in Delhi.”

TRUTH
This is an old photograph from Jalalabad, Afghanistan and dates back to 2020. It is totally unrelated to the current economic turmoil in Pakistan.
VERIFICATION AND METHODOLOGY
Using the reverse-image search tool on Google, we traced the original image on Reuters.
In a photo story dated October 21, 2020 published on the news agency, the same photo has been posted with the caption that reads, “Afghan men wait to collect tokens needed to apply for the Pakistan visa, in Jalalabad, Afghanistan October 21, 2020.” The original image is credited to photographer Parwiz from Reuters.

The news agency also published a report titled ‘Afghans jostling for visas to Pakistan spark stampede, killing 15’ carrying this image.
As per the report, at least 15 people were killed in a stampede among thousands of Afghans gathered to apply for visas for neighbouring Pakistan in Afghanistan’s eastern city of Jalalabad on Wednesday, officials told Reuters. Thousands of Afghans had congregated on the open ground, usually used for sports or public gatherings, waiting to collect tokens needed to apply for a visa, the report stated.
An Afghan news channel showed images of them holding passports aloft to secure a token. Images taken after the stampede showed scores of passports strewn across the ground, the report further mentioned.
Voice of America published a video report about this incident on their YouTube channel on October 22, 2020.

VERDICT
Times Fact Check has found that an old photograph from Afghanistan, where thousands gathered to collect tokens needed to apply for a visa, is being falsely peddled as Pakistanis trying to flee the cash-strapped nation to escape the economic crisis.