NEW DELHI: India on Friday postponed the second meeting on the Kartarpur corridor, scheduled for April 2 on the Pakistan side of the Attari-Wagah border, until certain “concerns and clarifications” sought by New Delhi were addressed.
These include reports that Khalistani leader Gopal Singh Chawla has been appointed to a 10-member panel aimed at helping Indian pilgrims visiting Gurdwara Darbar Sahib, the final resting place of Guru Nanak, in Kartarpur.
Chawla, the general secretary of the Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, has been linked to a grenade attack on Nirankari Bhawan in Amritsar in November, in which three people died, and is also said to be behind the decision to stop Indian diplomats thrice from meeting Indian pilgrims visiting Gurdwaras in Pakistan last year.
Reports said that Pakistan’s deputy High Commissioner Syed Haider Shah was summoned by the MEA on Friday and told that no further talks could be held until Indian concerns were addressed.
According to MEA release, “India has sought clarifications from Pakistan on key proposals put forward by India at the last meeting held in Attari to discuss the modalities of the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor. India has also shared concerns and sought clarifications on reports that controversial elements have been appointed by Pakistan to a committee to be associated with the Corridor.”