Chandigarh: On the occasion of Vaisakhi, a total of 2,840 visas have been issued to Indian Sikh pilgrims for visiting gurdwaras in Pakistan. Out of 1,795 applications sent by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, 1,763 visas have been approved, while 32 applications were rejected.
The SGPC-led group of 1,763 pilgrims will depart on April 10 from Amritsar amid religious chants. The pilgrims will attend the main Vaisakhi celebrations at Gurdwara Sri Panja Sahib and visit other sacred sites before returning to India on April 19.
SGPC Secretary Balwinder Singh Kahalon stated that pilgrims can collect their passports from the SGPC office on April 9 during office hours. The committee has also released the serial numbers of applicants whose visas were not approved.
Apart from SGPC, visas have also been granted to other Sikh bodies. The Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee received 409 visas, while 176 were issued to the Jammu Gurdwara Committee, 255 to the Haryana Committee, and 78 to applicants from Uttar Pradesh.
The DSGMC had submitted 451 applications, out of which 409 were approved. DSGMC President Harmeet Singh Kalka said the approvals came with the blessings of the Guru. However, he indicated that applicants whose names did not include “Singh” or “Kaur” faced difficulties in obtaining visas.
Committee member Paramjit Singh Chandok noted that non-Sikh applicants are facing challenges in securing visas, although such visas were granted in the past. The pilgrims will travel to Pakistan via the Attari-Wagah border on April 10.
