SGPC asks PM, Shah to reconsider decision

AMRITSAR: A day after the Ministry of Home Affairs denied permission to a Sikh Jatha to visit Pakistan for the centenary events of the Nankana Sahib massacre, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president Bibi Jagir Kaur on Thursday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah to register her protest. She urged them to reconsider the decision and allow the Sikhs to attend the February 21 event.

In her letter, Bibi Jagir Kaur wrote that the decision of the Government of India had hurt the sentiments of the Sikh sangat.

Reminding the PM and home minister that the SGPC had written to them regarding the jatha, as early as January 12, she said, “It is surprising that the Jatha was not permitted to go ahead with the pilgrimage at the last minute.”

The week-long pilgrimage was to start from Thursday and the Home Ministry had conveyed the decision of disallow the Jatha from visiting Pakistan on Wednesday evening.

They had cited security concerns as the reason for the decision.

Meanwhile, for the 700-odd members of the Sikh Jatha who were to leave for the neighbouring country on Thursday, the news came as a rude shock.

While some pilgrims got the news in time, many others turned up at the SGPC head office at the Golden Temple Complex on Thursday to board the bus that was to take them to Wagah border.

One such pilgrim, Santosh Kumari of Ropar, said her whole family was excited for the pilgrimage. “We came here at 8am today to board the bus but were shocked to hear that the government had denied the entire jatha permission to go Pakistan. We had been preparing for this pilgrimage throughout last month. My family was very enthusiastic about it.”

Take up security issue with Pak instead:sad

The SAD on Thursday asked the Centre to take up the issue of the perceived security threat to Sikh devotees, with the Pakistan government instead of arbitrarily denying permission to the jatha which was scheduled to visit Nankana Sahib.