Kartarpur: Sidhu writes to MEA, seeks permission for Pakistan visit

Cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu on Saturday wrote to Union Minister for External Affairs Subrahmanyam Jaishankar seeking permission for his Pakistan visit on the opening ceremony of the Kartarpur Corridor. “It is brought to your kind notice that I have been invited by Pakistan government for opening Ceremony of Shri Kartarpur Sahib Corridor on 09 Nov 2019. As a humble Sikh, it shall be a great honour to pay obeisance to our great Guru Baba Nanak on this historic occasion and connect to our roots," Sidhu wrote in his letter to the Union Minister. 

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Sidhu has also written to Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh seeking permission for his visit to Pakistan on opening of Kartarpur Corridor. Sidhu has been camping in New Delhi for the last two days. Navjot Kaur, wife of Sidhu, earlier this morning said, “Navjot Sidhu has applied to go to Kartarpur as he had an open invitation from Pakistan. Permission for his visit are not yet cleared. People have different thoughts. I would pray that Atari border should be opened so that trade can flourish. What other say about us, does not matter. There is happiness and joy that the Kartarpur corridor has been opened up. We won’t take any political delegation there and we would go there as a team. I can’t say by which route will he travel as there are regular phones from Pakistan for inviting him. We shall see how the permission works from external affairs ministry. The pilgrims should not be charged to pay for darshan.”

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On October 30, Republic Media Network was first to report that Pakistan has invited Sidhu on the inaugural of Kartarpur Corridor. “Pakistan senator Faisal Javed Khan on 30th evening called up Navjot Singh Sidhu inviting him for the event, to which Sidhu also agreed upon," sources told Republic. The then Punjab Cabinet Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu came into the eye of the storm in August last year when he hugged Pakistan Army General Qamar Javed Bajwa during his visit to Pakistan for Imran Khan's oath-taking ceremony. After his controversial hug and the controversies followed during the Parliament elections, Captain Amarinder Singh changed the portfolio of Sidhu terming his performance for up to mar during the elections. 

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Sidhu, however, remained absent from his office and didn’t resume the new charge assigned for a period of over one month. “Today I have sent my resignation to the Chief Minister Punjab, has been delivered at his official residence," Sidhu wrote on Twitter on July 15th, 2019 announcing his official exit from the Captain’s cabinet.

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