Manmohan Singh To Visit Pakistan for Kartarpur Corridor Inauguration, Modi, Kovind To Attend Ceremony in India

The chief minister said the flag off ceremony will be preceded by a brief public meeting of devotees at Dera Baba Nanak.

In this picture taken on September 16, 2019 a Pakistani paramilitary soldier (R) and an Indian soldier (L) stand between steel sheets beside an under construction bridge leading to the Sikh religious site Gurdwara Darbar Sahib, in the Pakistani town of Kartarpur near the Indian border. - Pakistan on September 16 announced that the Kartarpur corridor will be opened for Indian Sikh pilgrims early this November. (PIC/AFP)

New Delhi: Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will visit Pakistan for the inauguration ceremony of the Kartarpur Sahib corridor next month. Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh’s office said that Manmohan Singh has accepted the invitation to attend 550th Prakash Purb celebrations of Guru Nanak, including the historic opening of the Kartarpur Corridor. The Punjab government also invited President Ramnath Kovind and PM Narendra Modi and also urged them to join the mega events to mark the auspicious occasion. Modi and Kovind have also accepted the Punjab government’s invitation to be a part of the celebrations that will be held in the state. Speaking to reporters, CM Amarinder Singh said both had accepted the state government’s invitation to be a part of the historic celebrations and modalities for their visit would be finalized after the Kartarpur Corridor opening programme is frozen with Pakistan. An official spokesperson said the detailed official programme of events had been shared with both, the President and the Prime Minister, and they had been requested by the Chief Minister to attend as per their convenience. However, the Chief Minister had urged them both to, in particular, participate in the Kartarpur Corridor opening at Dera Baba Nanak and the November 12 main programme at Sultanpur Lodhi. According to the chief minister’s office, Singh also met and invited former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh to join the 1st all party Jatha to Kartarpur Sahib and participate in the main event. Dr Singh has accepted his invite, said the Chief Minister, who will lead the Jatha. Captain Amarinder also urged Manmohan Singh’s personal intervention to facilitate political clearance for allowing a Special All Party Jatha to visit Sri Nankana Sahib, the birth place of the first Guru, now in Pakistan, on the historic occasion. He requested that a Group of 21 persons may be allowed to visit Sri Nankana Sahib to organise a Path on the occasion of the 550th Prakash Purb from 30th Oct to 3rd November, 2019, and bring a Nagar Kirtan to Sultanpur Lodhi via Amritsar (Wagah) later in the day. The Nagar Kirtan will arrive in Sultanpur Lodhi (District Kapurthala) on 4th November. The Chief Minister has also written a DO letter to Minister of External Affairs Dr. S. Jaishankar seeking formal clearance for the Nankana Sahib Delegation visit and the Nagar Kirtan to be brought from Pakistan to Punjab, according to an official spokesperson. The chief minister said the flag off ceremony will be preceded by a brief public meeting of devotees at Dera Baba Nanak. The Punjab government has also proposed to organize an All Party Meeting from 11.00 am to 02.00 pm on 1st November 2019 at Sultanpur Lodhi, he said. In order to make it a memorable experience for all the participants of the event, the complete logistic and security arrangements for this meeting of pilgrims/sangat were being made by the state government, the chief minister added.