Punjab CM calls upon Swaraj for access to Pak gurudwara

Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Wednesday sought the intervention of External Affairs Minister (EAM) Sushma Swaraj to enable Indian devotees to visit the Gurudwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan's Kartapur on the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev.

In a letter, Singh called upon the EAM to hold discussions with her Pakistani counterpart to get a special corridor for devotees to visit the historic gurudwara in Kartapur, which is situated four kilometers from the International Border in Gurdaspur district's Dera Baba Saheb town.

"This will allow the faithful to pay their respects at the Gurudwara Sahib in Kartarpur," the Punjab Chief Minister said in the letter.

Noting that the 550th birth anniversary of the founder of Sikhism, who breathed his last in Kartarpur, is being celebrated in the month of November this year, Singh stated that one of the historical demands of the Sikh community was to have access to the shrine, that went to Pakistan following the partition in1947.

"The Government of Punjab has been requesting Government of India time and again for taking up the matter with the Government of Pakistan for a corridor from the International Border to Kartarpur," Singh said.

While highlighting efforts made in this matter by former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, which could not materialise, the Punjab Chief Minister urged Swaraj to personally intervene in the matter.