NEW DELHI: New Delhi on Friday lodged a strong protest with Pakistan over Indian consular officials being abused, harassed and denied access to Sikh pilgrims in Pakistan and the blatant promotion of Khalistani ideology at Gurdawaras being visited by these pilgrims. The protest comes a day after India and Pakistan announced they would open the Kartarpur Corridor for Sikh pilgrims from India wanting to visit Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur — some 5 km across the International border in Pakistan — for Guru Nanak’s 550th birth anniversary next year.
“..despite having been granted prior travel permission by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Pakistan, the Consular officials of the High Commission of India in Islamabad were harassed and denied access on 21 November and 22 November 2018 at Gurudwara Nankana Sahib and Gurudwara Sacha Sauda to the Indian pilgrims visiting Pakistan under the Bilateral Protocol. As a result of such harassment, they were compelled to return to Islamabad without performing their diplomatic and consular duties vis-a-vis Indian pilgrims,” the ministry of external affairs said in a statement.
Both nations allow these annual pilgrimages under the framework of the Pakistan-India Protocol on Visits to Religious Shrines, 1974. While Pakistan, in a “special gesture”, issued over 3800 visas to Sikh pilgrims from India this year, 144 Pakistani Zaireen (Muslim pilgrims) are visiting Sirhind in India for the annual Urs celebrations and to pay obeisance at the Shrine of Sheikh Faruqi Sirhindi (Mujaddid Alf Sani).
Noting that this was the third time such an incident had occurred “on the pretext of security in order to deflect attention from Pakistan’s violation of the international legal instruments and conventions,” the MEA statement said that “Pakistan has been reminded that this is in contrast to the treatment meted out to their High Commissioner and the Consular officials in New Delhi who have been provided full access to meet the Pakistani pilgrims who are currently in India on pilgrimage to Kalyar Sharif .
”Reports say the main reason for denial of access to Indian officials is because both Nankana Sahib and Sacha Sauda gurdwaras are awash with anti-India and pro-Khalistani posters and other propaganda.