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Pakistan issues visa to Sidhu to attend Kartarpur ceremony
Pakistan said on Thursday that it has issued a visa to cricketer-turned politician Navjot Singh Sidhu to attend the inauguration of the much-awaited Kartarpur Corridor
Pakistan said on Thursday that it has issued a visa to cricketer-turned politician Navjot Singh Sidhu to attend the inauguration of the much-awaited Kartarpur Corridor on November 9.
The Pakistan government invited Sidhu — who also attended the groundbreaking ceremony of the Kartarpur Corridor — to attend Saturday’s inauguration.
A ruling party spokesperson had said that Sidhu accepted the invitation, Dawn reported.
“Pakistan has issued visa to Indian politician Navjot Singh Sidhu for his visit to holy shrine of Baba Guru Nanak,” foreign office (FO) spokesperson Mohammad Faisal announced during his weekly media briefing here.
Sidhu, a Congress lawmaker and former Punjab minister, has sought permission from the external affairs ministry to attend the inaugural ceremony of the Kartarpur Corridor in Pakistan on November 9.
He had come under fire from the opposition after he hugged Pakistan Army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa during the swearing-in ceremony of Prime Minister Imran Khan in August last year.
Sidhu had then claimed that Gen Bajwa had told him about “making efforts to open the Kartarpur Corridor”.
The passport waiver for Kartarpur pilgrims would extend up to one year as a special gesture on the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev, Faisal was quoted as saying by Geo TV.
Faisal said Pakistan hoped a massive inflow of Sikh pilgrims from all over the world during the ceremony.
He said the promotion of Hindu and Buddhist sacred sites situated inside Pakistan was also under consideration as the country was a cradle of ancient civilizations for centuries.
Rejecting the reports linking Pakistan’s efforts on Kartarpur Corridor to encouraging Khalistan movement, Faisal said, “There was no such negativity in our policy.”
