Pakistan’s prime minister Imran Khan performed opening of the construction of Kartarpur Corridor leading to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib – one of the holiest places for Sikhs located close to Indian border in Pakistan’s Punjab province.
With the opening of the corridor, Indian Sikhs will not have to wait for visas and be able to visit the place just three kilometers inside Pakistani territoryon the 550th birth anniversary of Sikhism founder Guru Nanak next year.
The corridor will connect Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur area of Narowal district in Pakistan with Dera Baba Nanak in India’s Gurdaspur District.
In a sign of Pakistani civilian and military leaders being on the same page, Pakistan Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa also attended the landmark event in the heart of Punjab – divided into two parts at the time of 1947 freedom of the subcontinent from the British rule.
From the Indian side, former Indian cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu, Union Minister for Food Harsimrat Kaur Badal and Minister for Housing Hardeep S Puri came to attend the event as they stood alongside Imran Khan.
The Indian delegation traveled the place via Lahore, where they arrived on Tuesday through the Waga Border crossing and were received by officials of the Pakistan Rangers.
Gurdwara Darbar Sahib #Kartarpur is a gurdwara in Kartarpur, Narowal District, Punjab, #Pakistan. It is built on the historic site where #GuruNanak settled & assembled a Sikh community after his missionary travels. 🇵🇰
Full: https://t.co/jrw1H2rJWi #KartarpurCorridor pic.twitter.com/LT6pyl3IUt— Govt of Pakistan (@pid_gov) November 28, 2018
Pakistan and India agreed to build the corridor. Pakistan will build the portion from the Indian border up to the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur while India will construct the other part from Dera Baba Nanak in Indian Punjab’s Gurdaspur district up to the border with Pakistan.
Until now, Indian Sikhs have to first reach Lahore, then travel a further 130km to arrive in Narowal districts whose Tehsil Shakargarh houses the Sikh holy site.
The Gurdwara remained closed due to the tense relations between India and Pakistan until 1998, when the two South Asian countries agreed to facilitate Sikh pilgrims to visit Kartarpur after getting a Pakistani visa.
Meanwhile, New Delhi has said the opening of the Kartarpur corridor will not result in resumption of dialogue.
Indian Minister for External Affairs Sushma Swaraj also declined to attend the groundbreaking, although she thanked Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi for the invitation to attend the event.
Indian Vice President Venkaiah Naidu performed the groundbreaking Monday on the Indian side of the corridor at a ceremony just two kilometers from the Pakistani border.
Pakistan is planning to invite Prime Minister Narendra Modi to an upcoming SAARC Summit of South Asian nations.
Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa renewed the idea of giving visa-free access to Sikh pilgrims to Gurdwara Darbar Saheb August this year, while former military ruler, General Pervez Musharraf floated the proposal in 1999.
Meanwhile, Pakistan-India relations remain tense. Islamabad has been strongly condemning Indian atrocities in Kashmir, where people have been denied their right to choose whether they wish to remain with India, have an independent country or join Pakistan. New Delhi has been repeating its allegations of Pakistani backing for militants against India and that Islamabad has not yet prosecuted perpetrators of 2008 Mumbai attacks.
