Pakistan sends back 14 Indian pilgrims for being Hindus

Fourteen Indian citizens, approved by the Centre to go to Pakistan for visiting the travelling to visit Nankana Sahib, the birthplace of the founder of Sikhism, Guru Nanak, for celebrating his 556th birth anniversary, were sent back by Pakistani officials for being Hindus and not Sikhs.

The 14 Indian pilgrims snubbed by Pakistan for being Hindus were among the 2,100 people whom the Union Home Ministry permitted to visit Pakistan, reported NDTV, adding Pakistan also issued almost the same number of travel documents.

Around 1900 pilgrims entered Pakistan

About 1900 pilgrims entered Pakistan through the Wagah border crossing on Tuesday (November 5), reported NDTV.

Later, it came to light that among the pilgrims, 14 were sent back by Pakistani authorities for being Hindus. According to media reports, all the 14 pilgrims were Pakistani-born Sindhis who were later granted Indian citizenship.

‘You can't go with Sikh devotees’

The Pakistani authorities told them, “'you are Hindu… you can't go with Sikh devotees'”, reported NDTV, quoting sources. The report further stated that the 14 included people from Delhi and Lucknow, adding that they were forced to return after Pakistani officials said that only those tagged as Sikhs in their records would be allowed.

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Meanwhile, 300 people, who applied for visas independently, were sent back by Indian authorities as they did not have the required approval by the Home Ministry.

Event at Gurdwara Janamasthan

A delegation of Indian Sikh leaders and devotees, including Akal Takht leader Giani Kuldeep Singh Gargaj, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee member Bibi Gurinder Kaur, and Delhi Gurdwara Management Committee’s Ravinder Singh Sweeta, crossed the Wagah border into Pakistan to attend religious ceremonies.

The main event is scheduled to take place later today at Gurdwara Janamasthan, located about 80 km from Lahore. During their 10-day pilgrimage, the visiting Sikh devotees will also pay homage at Gurdwara Panja Sahib in Hasan Abdal, Gurdwara Sacha Sauda in Farooqabad, and Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur.

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The visit comes amid heightened tensions between India and Pakistan following Operation Sindoor, launched by India in response to the April 22 terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir.

The attack, which killed 26 people, mostly civilians attributed to The Resistance Front, a Lashkar-e-Taiba offshoot reportedly backed by Pakistan.