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Faith or discrimination? Why were Hindu devotees stopped from visiting Guru Nanak’s birthplace when they came in peace to pay respect?
Around 1,900 Sikh devotees allowed through Wagah border.
New Delhi: Fourteen Indian citizens who were part of a group of pilgrims visiting Pakistan for Guru Nanak Jayanti celebrations were reportedly denied entry by Pakistani officials. The reason, according to sources, was that the travellers were Hindus and not Sikhs.
The group was among 2,100 devotees cleared by India’s Home Ministry to attend the festivities at Nankana Sahib, the birthplace of Guru Nanak Dev, located around 80 kilometres from Lahore. Pakistan had also issued travel documents for roughly the same number of visitors.
However, when the pilgrims reached the Wagah border crossing, 14 of them, Pakistani-born Sindhis who had later acquired Indian citizenship, were stopped and told, “You are Hindu, you cannot go with Sikh devotees.” Shocked and humiliated, they were reportedly forced to walk back to India.
While the majority of around 1,900 pilgrims successfully entered Pakistan, several others who had applied independently were turned back from the Indian side for not having clearance from the Home Ministry. The group that entered included key Sikh religious leaders such as Giani Kuldeep Singh Gargaj of Akal Takht, Bibi Gurinder Kaur from the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, and Ravinder Singh Sweeta of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee.
During the 10-day pilgrimage, devotees are scheduled to visit major Sikh shrines, including Gurdwara Panja Sahib in Hasan Abdal, Gurdwara Sacha Sauda in Farooqabad, and Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur.
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Guru Nanak Jayanti, one of the most sacred festivals in Sikhism, marks the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev, the founder of the Sikh faith. The day is celebrated with great devotion across the world through prayers, community service, processions, and kirtans.
Guru Nanak’s teachings centred around equality, compassion, and unity. He rejected social divisions and emphasised that God is one for all. His message of “Ek Onkar” symbolises universal brotherhood beyond caste or religion, making the recent incident of religious discrimination especially disheartening for many believers.
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The development comes at a time when diplomatic ties between India and Pakistan remain tense following Operation Sindoor, India’s four-day military campaign in May in response to the Pahalgam terror attack that claimed 26 lives.
The rejection of Hindu pilgrims, many of whom had family roots in Sindh, has added another layer of strain to the already fragile people-to-people exchanges between the two nations. Observers note that while Sikh pilgrims have often been welcomed under existing agreements, such selective denial based on religion contradicts the spirit of Guru Nanak’s teachings and the purpose of these spiritual visits.
As the main celebrations unfold at Gurdwara Janamasthan in Nankana Sahib, the incident has sparked conversations on faith and discrimination. For many, the denial of entry to Hindu devotees who came with reverence for Guru Nanak has raised larger questions about religious inclusivity and the values of compassion and equality that the Guru stood for.
