SGPC delegation meets Pakistan's Charge d'Affaires to India over visa issues for Sikh pilgrims

Amritsar: A delegation of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) met the Charge d’Affaires of Pakistan to India, Saad Ahmad Warraich, in Delhi on Friday regarding visa-related issues for Sikh pilgrims.

The delegation demanded that the entire list of Sikh pilgrims sent by the SGPC for visiting Gurdwaras in Pakistan be granted visas and that the Sikh Jatha be allowed to travel according to the approved 'Nanakshahi' calendar on the occasion of the martyrdom day of Sikh Guru Arjan Dev.

The SGPC delegation included its Chief Secretary Kulwant Singh Mannan, member Rajinder Singh Mehta, Secretary Partap Singh, and Assistant Secretary Jaswinder Singh.

According to an SGPC statement, Kulwant Singh Mannan and Bhai Rajinder Singh Mehta stated that, in the past, a large number of visas for Sikh pilgrims from the list sent by the SGPC to the Pakistan High Commission were denied. A meeting was held with Pakistan’s officials in Delhi on Friday to discuss this matter.

The delegation emphasized that the SGPC, as the representative organization of Sikhs, sends Jathas every year to visit various Gurdwaras in Pakistan on significant occasions such as Khalsa Sajna Diwas (Vaisakhi), the martyrdom day of Guru Arjan Dev, the 'barsi' (death anniversary) of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, and the ‘Parkash Gurpurb’ of Guru Nanak Dev.

They claimed that for the past few years, the entire list of Sikh pilgrims sent by the SGPC has not been granted visas by the Pakistan High Commission, with a large number of names being removed from the list.

The SGPC officials said that this issue was raised with the Pakistan High Commission officials, demanding that visas be issued to the maximum number of pilgrims from the SGPC list, considering the devotion and religious sentiments of Sikh pilgrims toward the historical Gurdwaras in Pakistan.

They also requested that the Jatha of Sikh pilgrims be sent to Pakistan according to the 'Nanakshahi' calendar, as approved by the supreme temporal seat of the Sikhs, the Akal Takht, for the martyrdom day of the fifth Sikh Guru, Arjan Dev.

A letter was also submitted to the Pakistan High Commission.

According to the SGPC statement, the Sikh Jatha is sent to Pakistan every year on the martyrdom day of the fifth Guru. The SGPC observes the martyrdom day of Guru Arjan Dev annually according to the Nanakshahi calendar approved by the Akal Takht, while the Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (PSGPC) observes this day on the fixed date of June 16 every year.

"Due to the difference in dates, the SGPC has not been able to send the Jatha of Sikh pilgrims since 2012. The Pakistan High Commission does not issue visas for the list of Sikh pilgrims sent by SGPC in line with the approved Nanakshahi Calendar, which hurts the religious sentiments of Indian Sikh pilgrims,” the statement said.

The delegation noted that this year, the martyrdom day of Guru Arjan Dev will be observed by the SGPC and the Sikh community on May 30, 2025, as per the Nanakshahi Calendar approved by the Akal Takht.

"Therefore, visas should be issued to Indian Sikh pilgrims for May 30, 2025, so that the Sikh Jatha can visit Gurdwara Dehra Sahib, Lahore, and pay obeisance to the fifth Guru on his martyrdom day," they concluded.