Islamabad: Pakistan said Monday it expects to resume talks with India to finalise the agreement on the Kartarpur Corridor once the new government takes charge in New Delhi according to a report published in the ‘Express Tribune’ here.
The Kartarpur Corridor links Gurudwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan’s Narowal with Dera Baba Nanak shrine in Gurdaspur district in Punjab. The corridor, once operational, will provide a visa-free access to Sikhs from India to their holiest Shrine located inside Pakistan.
A senior Pakistani official said there was no delay on Pakistan’s part. “It is India that is not willing to engage in discussions at this juncture,” the official added while requesting anonymity. However, the official said Pakistan is confident that India would resume talks after the elections.
The two countries, nevertheless, held technical level talks at Zero Point (Kartarpur), April 16.
The Indian team was supposed to pay a return visit to Pakistan in April but New Delhi pulled out of the meeting at the last minute citing concerns over the committee formed by Pakistan to facilitate the Sikh pilgrims.
India expressed concerns over the presence of several Khalistani separatists in the 10 -member Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (PSGPC) appointed by Pakistan on the Kartarpur Corridor.
Last November, India and Pakistan agreed to set up the border crossing linking Gurudwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur, the final resting place of Sikh faith’s founder Guru Nanak Dev, to Dera Baba Nanak shrine in India’s Gurdaspur district.
Kartarpur Sahib is located across the river Ravi, about four kilometres from the Dera Baba Nanak shrine. The Shrine is visible from the Indian side of the border and everyday a larger number of Sikh devotees gather to perform Darshan or sacred viewings of the site.