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Situated on Indo-Pak border on Pakistani
side Kartarpur is the place where Guru Nanak passed away 466 years ago on
Asu sudi 10, 1596 Bikrmi [Monday Sept. 22, 1539 AD]. The interesting part
of the story which makes it a universal place is that when Nanak abandoned
his mortal body the question arose whether it should be buried the Islamic
way or burned according to Hindu rites since both Hindus and Muslims were
his followers. Each claimed his body. Ultimately it was mutually decided
that overnight, flowers be placed by both on his body and whose flowers
found withered the next morning would loose claim. Next morning when the
cloth sheet was removed body was missing and flowers of both communities
were found as fresh as they were overnight. The two communities then
decided to divide the cloth sheet one burying it and the other consigning
it to the fire. Further there are legends and legends but the harsh
reality of the present day is that there are three mausoleums. A Smadh and
a Grave are in Pakistan territory while the third one is in India. Then
there is river Raavi making a garland of serene waters around Kartarpur.
Kartarpur shrine building stands out singly
as there is no habitation around. Though there is a railway connection to
it and the station is named 'Darbar Sahib Kartarpur' on the Lahore- Chak
Amru line. It lies in the tehsil Shakkar Garh district Narowal of West
Punjab and is about 60Km from Lahore.Opposite nearest town on the Indian
side is Dera Baba Nanak
Before Partition of the country in 1947,
Kartarpur was in district Gurdaspur. When Sir Cyril Radcliffe drew the
boundary-line he happened to allot the whole of district Gurdaspur to
Pakistan (see June 3, 1947 Plan). How could the universal point go to
Pakistan alone? The miracles then began to happen. Lo and behold,
J.L.Nehru exercised his personal influence over Mountbatten and the
partition plan was revised. This time Gurdaspur was bisected. Radcliffe's
scissor made a cut right across Kartarpur; half of it going to Pak and
other to India.
Since then this shrine has remained
completely abandoned. Being on the border and that too on the bank of
river, it was surrounded by wild elephant grass that would grow up to 10
feet. We are told that the Pakistani rangers would seldom allow Muslim
devotees to go near the shrine due to security reasons. While the grass
grew over grave the wildness has all along been witnessed in the
international relations in the region; may be a divine curse.
But then the miracle happened. Pakistan
bowing before the international Sikh community agreed to grant a visa-less
free corridor to Kartarpur shrine from the Indian border. Since then the
Sikh devotees are impressing upon the Government of India to accept the
Pakistan proposal and allow Sikh pilgrims visit their holiest of holy
shrine.
Yes, Kartarpur is the most important shrine
for the Sikhs not because Nanak passed away here but for the fact it was
here Nanak demonstrated the practical aspect of his philosophy. It was
here he proclaimed 500 years ago that to attain God renunciation is not
necessary. He shifted his family to Kartarpur and became a house-holder.
For the first time on Indian subcontinent he ran a community kitchen the
Langar and asked the so called high and low caste people to dine together.
Guru Nanak lived 70 years on this earth but
most of the time he was on the move: from Iran/Iraq to Assam from high
lands of Tibet to Sri Lanka etc. But Kartarpur is the place where he
stayed: 18 long years. It is said he formally launched his philosophy by
founding the place of Kartarpur i.e the creator's abode. He did farming
here. Kartarpur is thus the birth place of Sikhism; its nursery.
Now that Pakistan has agreed to grant a
free corridor and several announcement have been made by that country
since 1999, it is strange that the Government of India has cold shoulder
response to this development
However on Sept. 1, 2004, when our beloved
prime minister Sardar Manmohan Singh visited Amritsar a ocean of a lac of
people greeted him. It was here he announced before every body that he
would see that the Pakistan offer of free corridor is accepted by
Government of India. Nothing happened there after.
Pakistan Offers Corridor Proposal
Pakistan agreed for a corridor in Nov.2000
and announced its acceptance plan before the visiting Sikhs. Pakistan
repeated its proposal See the following original news story published in
Pakistani and Indian papers:April 24, 2003
Musharraf offers ‘free passage’ to Sikh
pilgrims (Daily Times Monitor
LAHORE: (March 25,2003)The Pakistan
government is ready to provide an unrestricted passage to Indian Sikh
devotees who want to visit Gurdwara Kartarpur in Pakistan without passport
or visa, reports the Press Trust of India (PTI).
President Pervez Musharraf has offered to
provide Indian Sikhs with a corridor that will be fenced on both sides. No
passport or visa would be required but pilgrims would have to return
within a few hours of the same day.
The Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Parbandhak
Committee co-chairman, Sham Singh, and senior officials of the Pakistan
Evacuate Trust confirmed on Thursday.
Gurdwara Kartarpur in Pakistan is of three
kilometres from Gurdwara Dera Baba Nanak in Gurdaspur, with the Ravi River
separating them. A bridge, which joined the two Gurdwaras, was bombarded
during the 1965 Indo-Pakistan War.
Till 1960 there was an unrestricted passage
given to Sikhs to Gurdwara Kartarpur. With the opening of a free corridor,
Indian pilgrims will be able to visit Gurdwara Kartarpur throughout the
year. Hundreds of Sikh devotees from across the world have assembled in
Gurdwara Hanslabad, in Lahore, recently where a temple marks the
birthplace of Guru Nanak, and another one in Nankana Sahib near Lahore to
celebrate Baisakhi.
Nearly 100 Sikhs have been given special
permission to cross into Pakistan through the Wagah border for the
occasion.
and the Indian PM promises:-
PM: construction of corridor to be taken up
with Pak
Tribune News Service-Amritsar, September 1
The Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh,
today assured the Chief Minister of Punjab, Capt Amarinder Singh, that his
government would take up the construction of a 3 km-long corridor between
Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib (Pakistan) and Gurdwara Dera Baba Nanak
(Gurdaspur) during the forthcoming bilateral talks with Pakistan..........
World
Community should Respect Sikh Pilgrimage Rights Too
In the 1920s the Sikhs won an historic
religious battle through peaceful means to get their shrines liberated
from Brahminic Udasi priests. The world was impressed on the maintenance
of peace by agitators even at the height of instigations. There would be
mass beating up of Sikhs by the police while thousands of them were jailed
and many lost lives too. Sense of sacrifice obviously was the only
qualification to become a Sikh leader in those days.
After winning the battle when they were
consolidating the gains that another crisis erupted for the Sikh nation.
When Hindus and Muslims were fighting for their independence from the
British this very religious Sikh leadership who were least concerned of
the skills of the 'fine art of statesmanship' came forward to represent
the Sikhs in freedom struggle.
So much so this naive Sikh leadership at
Partition acquiesced to accept a boundary line that meant bisection of
their community in 39:61 ratio (39% in Pakistan and 61% Sikhs in India).
It is now a part of history how this immature leadership had tense
relations with all the parties in action namely Muslims, British and even
Hindus. On this crucial junction they bargained not even a buck for their
people.
Since they had developed strained relations
with Muslim League, 39% of their population that fell in Pakistan decided
to migrate to Indian side. A civil war broke out where 10 lakh Punjabis
were massacred. AND IN 1947 A LARGEST EVER MIGRATION IN THE HUMAN HISTORY
TOOK PLACE.
People were cut off from their roots, they
left behind their homes, hearths and everything in their attempt to flee
across the newly created border. Religious and cultural belongings were of
course the least concern before a threat to life.
It is again a part of history how Hindu and
Muslim leadership had accepted migration in principle' as cost of
freedom'. The British had secretly been warning the Sikh leadership that
they were committing a suicide in accepting migration as that would mean
annihilation heritage: cultural and religious bond with the land. This
link is evolved over a period of centuries and centuries will take to
break that connection they advised.
In the newly created countries: India and
Pakistan conditions became such that on both sides the politicians gained
by flaring up the communal feelings and vicious propaganda against one
another country. The religious and cultural link with the departed land
thus remained subdued for some time.
Now the two countries have almost forgotten
the unbreakable religious and cultural link of Punjabis with their lands
they were uprooted from. This link was not that of the Sikhs alone but
Muslims and Hindus too had their large number of heritage belongings left
behind. But the respective governments even ignored the Hindu Muslim
heritage for the simple reason that any refreshing activity on their
respective part would activate the Sikh mind.
But the Sikhs simply couldn't be persuaded
to severe their religious heritage link as that would have amounted to
demolition of the very foundation of the faith. The founder of Sikhism
Baba Guru Nanak was born, brought up, lived and died in that land now
called Pakistan. You simply can't snatch away the history of a people in
view of the communal preferences of the ruling people.
In the last 58 years this simple community
called the Sikhs has been kept deprived from their fatherland heritage.
This grievance of theirs is not against Pakistan the country they were to
visit. It is against the governments of their own country. The number of
Sikh that the two countries mutually allowed to visit their fatherland IN
A YEAR is just one tenth of the number of Sikhs pilgrims that paid their
homage ON ANY DAY at Golden Temple in Amritsar. Indian governments have
done everything possible to dissuade Sikhs' pilgrimage to Pakistan As and
when a pilgrim applies for a visit to Pakistan, a CID man drops in his
house in the name of making enquiries. Obviously this is done just to
intimidate the pilgrim otherwise what is logic of secret enquiry right
from the applicant pilgrim. This is notwithstanding the fact that in the
last 58 years no Sikh has ever done any anti-Indian activity while on
pilgrimage to shrines in Pakistan. Their country never wrote to Pakistan
to allow increase in numbers. Internationally the Govts are supposed to
serve the people and facilitate their lawful activities: religious or
cultural, but in case of Punjabis the Govt's attitude has not been fair
and helping.
It is the Punjabis alone who have been
deprived of their pilgrimages while the Govt has been quite liberal with
non-Punjabis' pilgrimages.
1. In June 2001 Deputy Prime Minister of
India Sh. L.K.Advani was kind enough to demand a passage to the Himalayan
Hindu shrine of Kailash Mansarovar. It takes about 23 days long travel in
Chinese territory to reach Kailash. Hon'ble Sh. A.B.Vajpayee Prime
Minister of India when last visited China in Sept.2003 also made a demand
for passage to Kailash and it was in news then that Chinese Govt has
acceded to the demand. Sikhs felt discriminated against as they were
demanding corridor to their first historical shrine Kartarpur which was
merely 3kms from border and that Pakistan has in principle agreed to allow
the corridor. While the BJP Govt remained silent on this demand.
Incidentally both Pakistan and China are termed as enemy countries in
India.
2.Respecting the peoples' faiths the
Indian Governments spend crores of rupees making arrangements for the
religious festivals, melas and kumbas. They even make arrangements for the
naga or the naked sadhus which is often socially offending and
embarrassing but they do it as they should. On Nov. 26 there was news of
India's plans on spending 54 crores of rupees on Ayodhia security.
3.For pilgrimage to Amarnath which falls in
J&K the Government deploys all its military might on the way for the
security of pilgrims. It has even encouraged pilgrimages in the last 10
years when there has been increased threat perception. But after the
tension due to Kargil conflict the Sikh pilgrimages to Pakistan were
abruptly stopped. What more ironic it would be that Govt encouraged Hindus
to undertake Amarnath Yatra in Kargil days.
4.When it comes to Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca
the Govt of India allows 82000 Muslims and spends Rs. 200 crore from the
state exchequer on their travel.
5.The Govt's encouraging Budhist tourists
to Budhist centres like Bodh Gaya.
6.India has very strange norms on crossing
to Pakistan. Even if you hold a valid passport and visa you are not
allowed to walk the border across. You will have to take a bus or train to
cross the border.
7.There has been a bus service between
Delhi and Lahore. Obviously the bus passes through Amritsar. But you are
not allowed to board the bus at Amritsar. If a Sikh from Amritsar were to
travel to Lahore(Just about 50kms) he is supposed first go to Delhi
(500kms) and then take the bus and travel back.
8.For many years after Partition of the
country the Govt has been allowing Pakistani pilgrims at the border shrine
called Chimliyal in J&K and at Sheikh Brahm's tomb at Khemkaran in
Amritsar Punjab. Similarly it has been encouraging the Ahmediya pilgrims
to Quadian in district Gurdaspur in Punjab.
9.In the name of Peace Process recently the
Govt has given certain relaxations for travel to Pakistan but there is
hardly any one in the case of Sikhs. About more than a year ago it was
announced that Amritsar-Nankana sahib bus service would be commenced but
it has failed to start so for though the announced date is nearing and
this gesture of the Govt is appreciable.
10.But in any case the effect of Peace
Process is not visible to the Sikhs. This is despite the extensive efforts
by Sikh Chief Minister Captain Amrinder Singh. Though we are hopeful for
the future but what is necessary is the very change in Govt attitude.
Though when the later visited Pakistan the Hindu media raised eye brows
'how can he discuss matters of external affairs when it is the domain of
Centre' they wrote.
11.The Govt and the media carries out
propaganda that inter-country traffic would encourage spying activities
and terrorism. This is a medieval thinking in view of the existence of IT
facilities like the internet and mobile phones. In the first place what do
we possess that we should hide from the world? We don't have any secret
plan of invading another country. Why should we thus hide things? Perhaps
we want to hide corruption, poverty and cases of violation of human
rights. Coming to terrorism it is again an accepted fact that
restrictions give rise to terrorism and freedom curtails it.
12. Off late change in attitude of the Govt
has been witnessed where it has opened border at some points in J&K. Also
Sri Nagar Muzzafrabad bus service has been started where the Kashmirits
can travel without passport to Pakistan. But here the subject under
discussion is the Sikhs' pilgrimage. We are sure that one will agree with
us that nothing has been done on this frontier. Sikhs were the first
people in the sub-continent to demand without passport visaless travel.
They didn't get any thing but are thankful to God that their Kashmiri
brothers have been benefited. A goodwill gesture towards Sikhs is also
awaited.
Civilised countries all over the world have
been respecting peoples' faith and facilitating pilgrims. For example even
if there was tension in the past the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca was never
stopped. Then there are countries which Saudi Arabia considers inimical,
yet there have not been any discrimination on their respective subjects
when they were on Hajj. Even the worst bigots of Iraq has never imposed
any sanctions on pilgrims visiting Karbala. Similarly there are no
restrictions on Christians of any country visiting Bethlehem and Vatican.
Berlin Wall had been biggest eye sore for the Germans and the
international community rejoiced its dismantling. Punjabis complain why
international community has failed to equate the barbed wire on Indo-Pak
border as different from Berlin wall.
Can we afford to withhold Jagannath Yatra
for a year? Can we suspend hajj or a year? Then why step-motherly
treatment to Sikhs? Only because they are a microscopic minority and their
leadership can be 'managed'. It is the height of Government apathy keeping
in view the Sikhs' contribution during India's freedom struggle: as many
as 86% of the people who were awarded capital punishment were Sikhs. The
Sikhs' role during wars of 1948, 1965, 1971 and Kargil has gone
unrecognised. It is all very unfortunate no other religionist is deprived
of pilgrimages as the Sikhs are. There is an urgent need of change of
attitude towards this simple community.
NOW OR NEVER
If General Musharraf President Pakistan can
feel nostalgic about Nehar Wali Haveli in Delhi and Manmohan Singh Prime
Minister about his village of Gah near Rawalpindi and Hassna Mochi his
childhood colleague why can't Dharam Singh a Sikh for the heritage he left
behind in 1947. Dharam Singh is now 71 and he came from Mallah in Shakkarh
Garh. He has been telling the stories of his great heritage at his
ancestral village. He is the only elderly man of his village left now. His
seniors all are gone.
Dharam Singh is the only link with Mallah.
If he also goes before the Govts decide to open the border the migrant
descendents of Dharam Singh will only speculate on the lost heritage of
their ancestors. It is only Dharam Singh who still holds traces of memory
of the village they left in 1947. But the governments must remember that
the coming generations are not going to forget their past. All parents
tell their children about the family tree.
It is now the crucial period. Because any
delay in opening the Punjab border would aggravate the migrants memories
memories. So the Govts should strike it now. Or else it will be late.
Every day gone we are loosing our elderly people who have fresh memories
in their minds of the villages and mohallas they left behind. The still
remember the tombs, smadhs and gurdwaras where these existed. Another 5-6
years means very few traces as very few old people those remember 1947
will be alive by that time.
So the Govts should act now. Relations
between India and Pakistan people are going to take new shape and no body
can stop it. If we sincerely read the history we will find that the
artificial divides have not existed for ever.
It is going to be dawn any way
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