Were asked why we praised Pak army, say 2 Kartarpur pilgrims

Two residents of Dairiwal village in Gurdasppur district’s Qadian block, who visited Gurdwara Darbar Sahib, Kartarpur, in Pakistan on January 25, said they were

Two residents of Dairiwal village in Gurdasppur district’s Qadian block, who visited Gurdwara Darbar Sahib, Kartarpur, in Pakistan on January 25, said they were questioned by local police as why they praised the army and police of the neighbouring country soon after their return via the newly opened visa-free corridor.

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Ranjit Singh (40) and Hardeep Singh (45) were quizzed by police on the basis of an alert from the Intelligence Bureau (IB), stirring a political controversy in the state. The issue also rocked the House during the ongoing budget session of the assembly on Thursday.

“When we came back from Kartarpur Sahib, some persons in civvies asked us about our experience. They asked us as how was the atmosphere across the border. We told them that we did not much difference between people on both sides of the border,” said Ranjit a farmer by profession who doubles up as a granthi in his village gurdwara.

“Then they asked about our observation about the Pakistan army and police. We told them that both displayed good conduct. But nearly after 15 days, we received a call from the Dhariwal police station asking us to appear there.

“When we went there with some village folks, the cops asked us to clarify as why we praised the Pakistan army and police. How could we term the Pakistan army and police wrong if they did not do anything wrong to us,” he added.