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Pakistan has issued 2,843 visas to Sikh pilgrims from India, allowing them to participate in the annual Baisakhi festival scheduled to take place in Pakistan from April 13 to April 22.
The announcement was made by the Pakistan High Commission in India through a post on social media platform X. Baisakhi, also known as Vaisakhi, holds immense cultural and religious importance for the Sikh community, marking the harvest festival and commemorating the establishment of the Khalsa Panth by Guru Gobind Singh Ji in 1699. Every year, thousands of Sikh pilgrims from across the globe gather in Pakistan to celebrate Baisakhi at historical Sikh shrines, including Gurdwara Panja Sahib in Hasan Abdal and Gurdwara Dera Sahib in Lahore. "On the occasion of Baisakhi celebrations, @PakinIndia has issued 2843 visas to Sikh pilgrims from India to participate in the annual festival scheduled to be held in Pakistan from 13-22 April 2024," said Pakistan High Commission in India in a post on X. In November, last year, the Pakistan High Commission issued around 3,000 visas to Sikh pilgrims from India to attend the event celebrating the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev. The issuance of visas is covered under the framework of the Pakistan-India Protocol on visits to Religious Shrines of 1974, according to the Pakistan High Commission in a New Delhi press release. Taking to X, the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi stated, "On the occasion of the 554th Birthday Celebrations of Baba Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the Pakistan High Commission, New Delhi issued around 3000 visas to Sikh pilgrims from India to attend the event scheduled to be held in Pakistan from 25 November to 04 December 2023." "During the visit, the pilgrims, inter alia, would go to Dera Sahib, Panja Sahib, Nankana Sahib and Kartarpur Sahib. Expressing his views on the occasion, Charge d'Affaires, Mr Aizaz Khan, extended his heartfelt felicitations to the pilgrims and wished them a safe journey," it added. (ANI)
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