The SIKH community has called on the Indian government to lift the ban on pilgrims traveling to Pakistan to visit Darbar Sahib, Kartarpur, to the 556th birth anniversary of Baba Guru Nanak Dev Ji in November.
In a statement, the Vice President of the Sikh Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (Pakistan) said that thousands of Sikh-Pilgrims are eager to attend the week-long festivities.
Pakistan’s government has assured the committee that the Kartarpur corridor remains open to Indian SIKH pilgrims and that Visa will be issued through the High Commission in New Delhi, he added.
Previously, India Pakistan’s invitation to the Sikh Pilgrims to visit Gurdwara Darbar Saib in Kartarpur, Narowal District, to attend the 486th day of death for Sikh -spiritual leader Baba Guru Nanak Dev Ji, scheduled for September 22.
Due to the closure of the Wagah/Attari border and Kartarpur -Corridor, there was no pilgrimage from India to participate in the ceremonies. However, Sikh devoted from the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe and other countries, however, planned to participate.
Pak-India Sikh Pilgrimage Dispute
Following the escalation of tension in April this year, both Pakistan and India closed Wagah/Attari border and expelled each other’s citizens. Later, between May 6 and May 10, the two countries participated in a short but intense confrontation with each other.
Read: India bars Sikhs from Guru’s anniversary
According to spokesman for the Evacuee Trust Property Board, Pakistan had made it clear at the time of the border ending that its doors remained open to the Sikh Pilgrims around the clock and they could visit when they wanted to.
He said Pakistan has again expanded an invitation to Indian Sikhs to Baba Guru Nanak’s anniversary, but sources confirm that the Indian government has refused to issue the required no-objection certificates (NOCS) for land trips.
When he expressed deep regrets about the situation, Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara said Parbandhak Committee’s President Sardar Ramesh Singh Arora that it was a violation of basic religious rights to prevent the Sikhs from visiting their holy places being a violation of fundamental religious rights.
He emphasized that no society should be deprived of freedom to perform his religious rituals and announced that he would share further details with the media at an upcoming press conference
