India on Monday lodged a protest with Pakistan against attempts to incite Sikh pilgrims visiting that country to revive the demand for 'Khalistan'.
Syed Haider Shah, Deputy High Commissioner of Pakistan in New Delhi, was summoned to the Ministry of External Affairs, where senior diplomats lodged a strong protest against attempts to use the ongoing visit of 1,800 Sikh pilgrims from India as an opportunity to raise the issue of “Khalistan”.
New Delhi noted that “inflammatory statements” had been made and posters supporting the demand for carving out Khalistan from India had been displayed at various places during the Sikh pilgrims' visit to Pakistan.
“Pakistan was called upon to immediately stop all such activities that were aimed at undermining India’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and incitement of disharmony in India,” the Ministry of External Affairs said in a press release.
Amounts to interference
New Delhi conveyed to Islamabad that such repeated attempts by authorities and entities in Pakistan to extend support to secessionist movements in India amount to interference in the internal affairs of India.
“Moreover,” the senior diplomats conveyed to the deputy envoy, “such incidents during the visit of the Indian pilgrims (to Pakistan) went against the spirit of the bilateral Protocol of 1974 governing the exchange of visits of pilgrims between the two countries.”
New Delhi earlier alleged that the diplomats and others officials of High Commission of India in Islamabad had not been allowed to meet the Sikh pilgrims.
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