Pakistan issues 3,000 visas to Sikh Pilgrims, Denies close to 50% SGPC Requests

Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi issued approximately 3,000 visas to Sikh pilgrims from India to attend the events celebrating Guru Nanak’s 554th birth anniversary. The Charge d'affaires of Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi, Aizaz Khan, extended his felicitations to the pilgrims and wished them a safe journey. The celebrations are being held in Pakistan from 25 Nov to 4 Dec. During the visit, pilgrims will visit major Sikh founder-Guru Shrines Dera Sahib, Panjab Sahib, Nanakana Sahib and Kartarpur Sahib; this access issue is another legacy of 1947 Partition. However, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president Harjinder Singh Dhami has expressed strong discontent over the denial of visas to a significant number of Sikh devotees traveling to Pakistan. He said in Amritsar out of 1,684 pilgrims sent by the SGPC to the Pakistan embassy in Delhi, 788 were denied visas. Meanwhile, the Land Port Authority of India’s (LPAI) decision to allow pilgrims to visit the Passenger Terminal Building (PTB) of the Kartarpur Sahib corridor has resulted in an increase in the number of visitors. Many Sikh devotees without a passport or a booking come to the Zero Line to see the Gurdwara. Officials are allowing them to enter the corridor and visit the passenger terminal building too. In the opening year 2019-20, more than 62,000 pilgrims visited the corridor. In 2022-23, this number dropped to 50,584. The daily pilgrim average is still much lower than 200 per day against a potential 5,000 per day. Abolishing the requirement for a passport for a visit to Kartarpur Sahib will boost visitor footfall.