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NEW DELHI: India has rejected Pakistan’s proposal to reopen Katarpur Corridor on June 29, saying that cross-border travel has been suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Times of India.
“Describing Pakistan’s move to open the corridor in two days as a mirage of goodwill, government sources said this would only undermine the bilateral agreement which required India to share information with Pakistan a week before the date of travel”, the publication reported.
“Government sources said this would only undermine the bilateral agreement which required India to share information with Pakistan a week before the date of arrival,” the publication added.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Pakistan had issued a statement earlier in the day conveying its “readiness” to the Indian side to reopen the corridor on the occasion of Maharaja Ranjeet Singh’s death anniversary on June 29.
“As the religious places are gradually opening up around the world, Pakistan has also made necessary arrangements to reopen Kartarpur Sahib Corridor for Sikh pilgrims,” read the statement.
The statement added, “To ensure adherence to the health guidelines, Pakistan has invited India to work out necessary SOPs for reopening of the Corridor.”
Corridor was inaugurated last year on November 9, three days before the 550th Birth Anniversary of Baba Guru Nanak, fulfilling “the long-awaited desire of Sikh devotees of the international community,” the statement noted.
The statement described the Corridor as “a true symbol of peace and religious harmony” and how the landmark initiative “has been immensely appreciated by the Sikh community all over the world including India”.
“The first Guru of Sikhism, Baba Guru Nanak Saheb, had spent the last 18 years of his life in Kartarpur,” it added.
According to the statement, the Corridor was “temporarily closed on 16 March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic” and Pakistan is now looking to reopen it after SOPs are put in place with joint consultation between both sides.
On Saturday, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi on a social media post said that Pakistan prepares to reopen the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor for all Sikh pilgrims as places of worship open up across the world.
As places of worship open up across the world, Pakistan prepares to reopen the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor for all Sikh pilgrims, conveying to the Indian side our readiness to reopen the corridor on 29 June 2020, the occasion of the death anniversary of Maharaja Ranjeet Singh.
— Shah Mahmood Qureshi (@SMQureshiPTI) June 27, 2020
