During their 10-day stay, the pilgrims will visit key sites such as Nankana Sahib and Panja Sahib.
Baba Karnail Singh, Baba Sardar Shobaik Singh and Sardar Harbans Singh were among the pilgrims who crossed into Pakistan to attend the Baisakhi festival. PHOTO: ASIF MEHMOOD
LAHORE:
Hundreds of Sikh pilgrims who arrived from India to the Wagah border on Friday included three elderly people whose journey brought back memories spanning more than eight decades, as they returned to their birthplace in Pakistan for the first time since the 1947 partition.
Baba Karnail Singh, Baba Sardar Shobaik Singh and Sardar Harbans Singh were among the pilgrims who crossed into Pakistan to attend the Baisakhi festival. For them, the visit was not simply a religious pilgrimage but a deeply personal return to their ancestral village after a life of separation.
The three were born in Dogej Wahgariyan, a village on the outskirts of Lahore, but were displaced during Partition and later settled in Shahura, a border area in the Indian district of Amritsar. Despite the passage of time, they said their memories of their village remained vivid.
Although Pakistan issued 2,840 visas, only 2,238 pilgrims arrived, and more than 600 did not travel despite receiving visas.PHOTO: ASIF MEHMOOD
During the immigration at Wagah, the elderly pilgrims seemed excited. Baba Karnail Singh remembered the village streets, the trees and a well where he spent his childhood. Baba Sardar Shobaik Singh said he still remembered the names of his Muslim friends but did not know where they were now, adding that not being able to return earlier had been a lifelong regret.
For Sardar Harbans Singh, the visit fulfilled a long-cherished wish. He said his only wish in life had been to see his birthplace once more.
His story stood out among a larger group of 2,238 Indian Sikh pilgrims who came to Pakistan to participate in Baisakhi and the 327th birth anniversary of Khalsa.
The pilgrims were welcomed at Wagah by officials including Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee President and Punjab Minority Affairs Minister Sardar Ramesh Singh Arora, Additional Secretary Shrines Nasir Mushtaq and Lahore Commissioner Maryam Khan.
Mushtaq said comprehensive arrangements had been made for the pilgrims, including accommodation, langar, transportation and medical facilities. He added that the main Baisakhi ceremony would be held on Tuesday at Gurdwara Panja Sahib in Hasan Abdal.
Arora said Pakistan was “not a second but the first home” for Sikhs, adding that the issuance of thousands of visas despite tense bilateral relations reflected the country’s commitment to peace. He said the doors of Pakistan would remain open for Sikh pilgrims.
Read more: Baisakhi celebrations are about to begin
He further stated that 17 gurdwaras in Pakistan would become operational this year, while restoration works at 34 more sites would be completed in the next two years. He also urged India to completely open the Kartarpur Corridor to facilitate religious travel.
Arora said Pakistan guaranteed complete religious freedom for minorities and highlighted the country’s efforts for regional peace, referring to diplomatic initiatives led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Chief of Defense Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir.
During their 10-day stay, the pilgrims will visit key sites such as Nankana Sahib and Panja Sahib.
Leaders of various Indian groups also appreciated the arrangements. Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee group leader Sardar Surjit Singh said Pakistan had consistently extended hospitality to Sikh pilgrims. Representatives of Delhi Gurdwara Management Committee Sardar Paramjit Singh Chandok and Sardar Harjit Singh also thanked Pakistani authorities for issuing visas and facilities.
Although Pakistan issued 2,840 visas, only 2,238 pilgrims arrived, and more than 600 did not travel despite receiving visas.
Pilgrims expressed similar sentiments. Manpreet Kaur, from Amritsar, said she never felt like a stranger in Pakistan and felt like she had returned home. Harpal Singh from Delhi said ties between the two countries should improve to allow people to share each other’s joys and sorrows.
Another pilgrim, Jaspreet Kaur, said she would bring clothes and gifts for her relatives, but the most important thing was the love and respect she received in Pakistan.
Many pilgrims expressed their hope to improve relations between Pakistan and India and facilitate access for religious visits in the future.
The pilgrims were later transported under tight security in buses to Gurdwara Panja Sahib in Hasan Abdal, where they will perform religious rituals.
In the midst of the larger gathering, the quiet smiles and teary eyes of the three elders reflected a rare reunion with their past, as they briefly reconnected with the land they had left behind decades ago.
