Pakistan and India have renewed their agreement to facilitate pilgrims via the Kartarpur Corridor for an additional five-year period, the Foreign Office (FO) said on Tuesday.
A statement issued by the FO said that the “Agreement between the Republic of India and the Government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan for the facilitation of pilgrims to visit Gurudwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur, Narowal, Pakistan” had been signed for an additional period of five years.
Originally signed on October 24, 2019, for a five-year term, the agreement was set to complete its initial duration on Thursday.
“Its renewal underscores Pakistan’s enduring commitment to fostering interfaith harmony and peaceful coexistence,” the statement read.
“The agreement continues to offer visa-free access to pilgrims from India enabling them to visit the sacred site of Gurudwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur, where Baba Guru Nanak, the revered founder of Sikhism, spent his final days,” the statement read.
Since its inception, the corridor has facilitated the pilgrimage of thousands of worshippers to this holy site, the statement added.
“The Kartarpur Corridor fulfils the long-cherished aspirations of the Sikh community for access to one of their most revered religious landmarks.
“It reflects Pakistan’s recognition of the importance of safeguarding the rights of religious minorities,” the statement said.
The initiative has earned widespread appreciation from the international community, including United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres who described it as a “Corridor of Hope”, according to the statement.
Indian Minister for External Affairs Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said in a statement on X that “Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government will continue to facilitate our Sikh community’s access to their holy sites.”
For up to 30 million Sikhs around the world, Kartarpur is one of their holiest places. When Pakistan was carved out of colonial India at independence from Britain in 1947, Kartarpur ended up on the western side of the border — though most of the region’s Sikhs remained on the other side.
For them, it is tantalisingly close — just four kilometres inside Pakistan, so near that Indian Sikhs have been known to stand on the other side and simply gaze across the divide at the site.
But decades of enmity between India and Pakistan has left extreme restrictions on their ability to visit.
Former prime minister Imran Khan formally inaugurated the Kartarpur Corridor at a colourful ceremony in November 2019, paving the way for Indian Sikh pilgrims to visit one of their religion’s holiest sites in Pakistan without needing a visa.
PML-N Senator Irfan Siddiqui announced on Thursday that major parties had reached a consensus on “90 per cent” of the points in the much-touted constitutional package, adding that it would be presented in the Senate tomorrow.
The much-talked-about Constitutional Package is legislation proposing a set of constitutional amendments, including the extension of the top judge’s term.
Three separate drafts of the constitutional package were being prepared — one by the government, the second by the PPP, and the third by the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F). A committee, led by PPP’s Khursheed Shah, has the representation of all parties, including the PTI. It was formed by the National Assembly speaker for reconciliation among lawmakers, particularly between the PTI and the government, after a raid by plainclothesmen to round up the PTI men from the Parliament House.
In a meeting at the residence of the Sharif family in Lahore, the ruling parties on Wednesday virtually succeeded in winning over Maulana Fazlur Rehman of the JUI-F for their reform package.
However, the parties still require cooperation from the PTI to achieve complete consensus on the constitutional amendments, which have become a bone of contention in national politics of late.
The meeting, attended by the heads of all three parties — the PML-N, PPP, and JUI-F — discussed the amendments threadbare and hoped to address the sticking points, besides giving the final touches to the tweaks.
After midnight, they held a press conference to brief the media about the outcome of the meeting. Fazl said agreement on some points had been achieved and the trio was “near consensus” on some issues. He appeared hopeful, saying they were heading towards consensus.
Senator Siddiqui told reporters today that most of the amendments had been agreed upon after attending a meeting of the parliamentary committee deliberating on the package.
“God willing, we have full consensus very soon,” Siddiqui said. “We have reached a consensus on 80-90pc of the larger matters and we are aiming to reach an agreement on smaller issues today.
“The amendments will be presented in the Senate tomorrow,” he added.
Meanwhile, Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Omar Ayub accused the government of bribery and kidnapping PTI lawmakers in order to pass the 26th amendment.
“Zain Qureshi’s wife was taken to an undisclosed location at gunpoint,” Ayub alleged while talking to reporters. “She has been recovered and I spoke with [National Assembly] Speaker Ayaz Sadiq. They have raided the homes of our journalists as well.”
The opposition leader continued: “This is their current state. People are being offered bribes of between Rs700 million and Rs1 billion in cash, anytime and anywhere. These are the offers to our MNAs, along with ministries, and similarly is happening with our Senators. This just proves that they do not have the numbers.”
PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar said the party was still working on its draft bill, adding that a final draft would be presented once it was accepted by party founder Imran Khan.
“When we meet with him, we will take his recommendations and input into consideration. Then we will present a final draft.”
In an earlier media talk today, Gohar said, “We’ve said that we will consult on the draft with Maulana sahib. We have said this categorically. We need to discuss it with Imran, only then will we present a draft.”
He added that legislation was “not a numbers game, but a game of conscience”. The chairman described the alleged harassment of PTI lawmakers and their families as “unconscionable”.
Gohar also claimed that seven of the government’s potential voters were “not on their side”.
“When they vote, the government will be shocked,” he added.
Later in the day, a PTI delegation visited Fazl to discuss the package and the overall political situation.
An earlier attempt by the ruling PML-N to bulldoze the amendments did not succeed as it failed to win over the JUI-F and the legislation could not be tabled despite houses being in session.
After that, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari took the driving seat to evolve a consensus over ‘much-needed judicial reforms’, primarily setting up a constitutional court. According to the PPP leader, this court was an unfinished agenda of the Charter of Democracy signed by his late mother Benazir Bhutto.
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar on Saturday held a telephone call with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud in which they expressed their “deep commitment and support for the people of Palestine and Lebanon”.
A post on X by the Foreign Office said the two diplomats discussed the situation in the two conflict-ridden countries subject to an Israeli military offensive.
The Saudi Press Agency said both also reviewed relations between the two countries and discussed regional and international developments
Israel’s military onslaught in Gaza has killed more than 42,000 Palestinians since it began a year ago and has laid waste to the enclave.
The offensive began after a Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023, on southern Israeli communities in which 1,200 people were killed and about 250 were taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies.
Meanwhile, Israel’s latest fight with Hezbollah started when the group fired missiles at Israeli positions immediately after the Oct 7 attack. Hezbollah and Israel have been exchanging fire ever since.
As months of indirect ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas went nowhere, Israel in September began ramping up its bombardment of Hezbollah and landed painful blows on the group, including remotely detonating Hezbollah pagers and radios, wounding thousands of the group’s members.
After Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah’s death, US President Joe Biden called again for a ceasefire along the Israel-Lebanon border.
The government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu launched its ground invasion anyway.
Its expanded operation has displaced more than 1.2 million people, according to Lebanon’s government, which says more than 2,100 people have been killed and 10,000 wounded in over a year of fighting. The toll includes scores of women and children.
Separately, a statement from the Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) issued today said the seventh meeting of the Pakistan-Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Bilateral Defence Industrial Forum was held in Riyadh on Thursday.
Pakistan’s tri-services delegation was led by Chief of General Staff (CGS), Lieutenant General Muhammad Avais Dastgir, whereas, Assistant Defence Minister Talal Bin Abdullah Al Otaibi led the Saudi Arabian side.
During the meeting, the CGS affirmed Pakistan’s continuing support towards the capacity building of the Royal Saudi Defence Forces.
The Saudi dignitary acknowledged Pakistan’s achievements and sacrifices in the war against terrorism and its valuable contributions towards regional peace and stability.
The forum’s participants discussed challenges to global and regional security and their implications for the Defence Forces.
They noted that rapid advancements in modern technologies necessitated further enhancing defence industrial cooperation in critical capabilities between the two allied countries.
In this context, the ISPR said that the progress of ongoing areas of collaboration was reviewed while new areas of collaboration were also agreed upon.
At least four people were injured when an explosion occurred near Karachi airport on Sunday night, police confirmed, with sounds of the blast heard in various areas.
Television footage showed smoke rising from the area near the airport, with a blazing fire visible on the road.
“Four injured persons, including one in critical condition, have been brought to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical College (JPMC),” police surgeon Dr Summaiya Syed told Dawn.com.
“The sound of the explosion has been heard in different areas of the city,” said DawnNews TV reporter Imran Hafeez. “The sound was heard as far as North Nazimabad, II Chundrigar Road, and Karimabad, among other areas.”
The reporter stated that some cars also caught fire because of the explosion.
Crime Investigation Department (CID) Director General Asif Ejaz Shaikh told Dawn.com that nothing is clear about nature of explosion at this moment.
Meanwhile, Dawn News TV added that all entry and exit points to the airport have been closed by the law enforcement agencies. It added that the entire area surrounding the airport has been cordoned off while a search operation is in progress.
A statement from the office of the Sindh Home Minister Zia Ul Hassan Lanjar said that a tanker exploded on Airport Road, adding that he has been in contact with the Malir senior superintendent of police (SSP) regarding the incident.
“We need to ascertain the facts,” the statement said.
A spokesman for Rescue 1122 Sindh said in a statement, “The Central Command and Control Rescue 1122 received the information and the team of Rescue 1122 along with the ambulance have reached the scene.”
Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah has taken notice of the incident and ordered that the injured be provided with the best medical aid.
According to a press statement from the CM’s spokesperson Rasheed Channa, the CM has asked the Sindh Police chief for a report on the incident, as well as detailed information on the cause of the explosion.
This is a developing story that is being updated as the situation evolves. Initial reports in the media can sometimes be inaccurate. We will strive to ensure timeliness and accuracy by relying on credible sources such as concerned, qualified authorities and our staff reporters.
