Diplomat Satyanjal Pandey is likely to become India's next charge d'affaires at the Indian High Commission in Pakistan, PTI news agency reported, citing people familiar with the matter.Satyanjal Pandey is expected to succeed Geetika Srivastava as India's chargé d'affaires in Islamabad. (@adgpi)Pandey, a 2008-batch Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer, is currently serving as India's Deputy High Commissioner in Sri Lanka. If appointed, he will take over the diplomatic assignment in Pakistan at a time when bilateral ties between New Delhi and Islamabad continue to remain limited.If and when Pandey assumes charge, he will succeed Geetika Srivastava, a 2005-batch Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer who was appointed as India's charge d'affaires in Islamabad in August 2023.Also read: After 'Operation Sindoor', Pak summons Indian Charge d'AffairesLeadership change at Indian missionThe proposed appointment marks a routine leadership change at India's diplomatic mission in Pakistan. As charge d'affaires, Pandey would head the Indian High Commission in Islamabad in the absence of a high commissioner.Geetika Srivastava, who Pandey is expected to succeed, was the first woman charge d’affaires of India in Pakistan.Also read: Geetika Srivastava to be first woman chargé d’affaires in Indian mission in PakPandey is currently posted in Colombo as India's Deputy High Commissioner.Diplomatic ties remain downgradedIndia and Pakistan have continued to maintain diplomatic relations at the charge d'affaires level since Pakistan downgraded ties with India in 2019.The move followed India's decision to withdraw the special status of Jammu and Kashmir in August that year. Since then, the two countries have not restored the exchange of high commissioners, with their respective diplomatic missions in Islamabad and New Delhi. The diplomatic missions are being headed by charge d'affaires after 2019.As a result, both the Indian High Commission in Islamabad and the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi continue to function under charge d'affaires rather than full-fledged high commissioners.