News Desk |
Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday, 28th November, performed the groundbreaking of the long-awaited corridor connecting Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur area of Narowal district to Dera Baba Nanak in India’s Gurdaspur district today.
The event was attended by PM Khan, COAS Bajwa, amongst other senior leadership representing the Pakistani side and on the Indian contingent were Najvot Singh Siddhu, Punjab Minister for Tourism, Indian Minister for Food Harsimrat Kaur Badal and Minister for Housing Hardeep S. Puri.
Indian Minister for External Affairs Sushma Swaraj announced that India will not attend the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) conference if it is held in Pakistan.
Speaking to the assemblage that took place today, Prime Minister Imran Khan appreciated the joy on the faces around him. “Today I want to welcome all our guests, our Sikh brothers and sisters who have come from all around the world.”
“The happiness I see in you today if I were to explain to my Muslim brother and sisters, is that imagine that you are standing 4km outside Madinah and cannot go in, and you are then given the chance to go. That is the happiness I see here.”
“We will keep improving the Kartarpur darbar for you,” he told Sikh pilgrims. “We will keep giving you facilities … When you come next year, we will provide you with every sort of facility,” the PM said.
Read more: India must give diplomacy a last chance before it’s too late
Former cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu took the stage amid loud applause and cheering. “India’s Constitution says there will be no discrimination on the basis of caste or creed. Baba Guru Nanak said this 549 years ago,” Sidhu said.
He said there had been enough bad blood and that the corridor would be a major opportunity to open the doors of the hearts of the people. Sidhu said that if the borders between both countries opened, it would be possible to transport goods to different parts of Pakistan and even others countries.
It is not a surprising statement of Ms. Swaraj as whenever Pakistan has extended an olive branch to India, their FM made sure to not only reject it but issue a harsh statement to suppress the hope of nations on both sides.
“This is my hope, this is my dream … While there is blood in my veins, I will continue to thank both governments,” he said.
As if upon cue, the Indian foreign Minister sought the opportunity to clarify that there will be no talks and this corridor does not signify any diplomatic progress. Indian Minister for External Affairs Sushma Swaraj announced that India will not attend the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) conference if it is held in Pakistan.
She brushed off any possibility of improvement in relations between India and Pakistan, despite the opening of the Kartarpur crossing. “Until and unless Pakistan stops terrorist activities in India, there will be no dialogue and we will not participate in SAARC[conference],” asserted Swaraj.
Read more: Kartarpur Corridor: A new hope for peace
Owing to India’s refusal to attend, Pakistan will not be able to convene the event for the third year now. Participation of all member states is mandatory for the convening of a SAARC summit.
It is not a surprising statement of Ms. Swaraj as whenever Pakistan has extended an olive branch to India, their FM made sure to not only reject it but issue a harsh statement to suppress the hope of nations on both sides.
There is no denying that peace talk is the only way forward; it is, however, imprudent that even after a lot of bloodsheds, economic loss, and willingness of nations on both sides of the border, the Indian government has never accepted or appreciated the welcoming peace gesture from Pakistan.
Read more: How Pakistan outsmarted India using soft diplomacy?
And today too, at a historic moment, FM Swaraj did not restrain from making her customary announcement.