Fourteen Indian pilgrims initially allowed entry by Pakistan were sent back after officials reportedly rejected them as “Hindus, not Sikhs”. They were part of a group of 2,100 traveling to Nankana Sahib to mark the 556th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism.
The group received permission from the Union Home Ministry to visit Pakistan. Islamabad also issued travel documents to approximately the same number.
Pakistan fielded around the same number of visitors but these 14 were turned away at the last leg and their pilgrimage ended just a few feet from the crossbar.
According to NDTV14, all Pakistani-born Sindhi Hindus who later became Indian citizens were asked by officials to return.
They were told, “You are Hindus… you cannot go with Sikh devotees,” the source added. The report also said that they belonged to Delhi and Lucknow.
1900 Indian devotees allowed to pass
An estimated 1,900 pilgrims crossed into Pakistan on Tuesday to mark the 556th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak, the first such civilian exchange since Operation Sindoor in May.
The military operation followed the Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir that killed 26 people, mostly civilians.
Among those allowed entry were leaders from Sikh bodies, including Akal Takht chief Giani Kuldeep Singh Gargaj, SGPC representative Bibi Gurinder Kaur and Delhi Gurdwara Management Committee member Ravinder Singh Sweeta. The visiting party is to attend ceremonies at Gurdwara Janamasthan in Nankana Sahib, about 80 km from Lahore.
Confusion over visas heightens tensions
In addition to the 14 returned by Pakistani officials, another 300 individuals who applied for visas independently were stopped on the Indian side because they did not have permission from the home ministry, the sources said.
The main celebrations will be held at Gurdwara Janamasthan, followed by visits to other important Sikh shrines – Gurdwara Panja Sahib in Hasan Abdal, Gurdwara Sacha Sauda in Farooqabad and the Kartarpur Sahib corridor.
Diplomatic tensions between India and Pakistan have remained tense since the Pahalgam attack in April, which was blamed on The Resistance Front, an offshoot of Pakistan’s Lashkar-e-Taiba. The denial of entry to Hindu pilgrims has added another layer of bitterness to the already fragile interpersonal relationship between the two neighbours.
