LAHORE – India has once again barred 720 Sikh pilgrims from visiting their holy site in Pakistan and has stopped them from crossing the Wagah border, citing Covid-19 and “safety” reasons.
The Sikh pilgrims scheduled to take part in the upcoming Saka festival at Gurdwara Janamasthan at Nankana Sahib on Sunday (18 Feb to 25), for which all necessary arrangements had been finalised, said the Spokesman of the Evacuee Trust Property Board.
The spokesman also added that the Sikh community will stage a protest at Gurdwara Dera Sahib in Lahore this on Thursday afternoon against the decision by the Indian authorities.
Last year in June, India prevented Sikh pilgrims from attending Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur.
The Kartarpur corridor, which was temporarily closed in March 2019 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, was reopened in June on the occasion of the death anniversary of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the 19th Sikh century ruler of Punjab.
The Kartarpur Gurdwara, situated in the Narowal district, is one of the most revered places for the Sikh community as Baba Guru Nanak spent the last 18 years of his life there. The distance between Kartarpur and the Indian town of Gurdaspur is merely three kilometers.
