Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh has declined Pakistan Foreign Minister’s invitation to attend the foundation stone laying for the Kartarpur Corridor on the other side of the border, citing continued terrorist attacks in his state and killings of Indian soldiers by Pak armed forces.
Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh has declined Pakistan Foreign Minister’s invitation to attend the foundation stone laying for the Kartarpur Corridor on the other side of the border, citing continued terrorist attacks in his state and killings of Indian soldiers by Pak armed forces.
In a letter to Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi, the Chief Minister has welcomed the historic occasion, which he described as the cherished desire of the Sikhs around the world, but said he must most reluctantly, however, regret his inability to be present.
The Chief Minister said his reasons for declining the invitation were twofold. Firstly, “Not a day passes when Indian soldiers are not killed or wounded on the line of control in Jammu and Kashmir,” he said, adding that, “Rather than moving towards normalcy these incidents are escalating.”
Secondly, the Chief Minister accused the ISI of starting its “nefarious activities within Punjab.” He also said that since his Government was sworn in, in March 2017, the state had neutralized 19 ISI armed and controlled modules, apprehended 81 terrorists and recovered 79 weapons, in addition to numerous grenades of the HG 84 type made in Pakistan’s Ordnance factories, with Austrian knowhow, along with seizure of some IEDs. “The last attack was in Amritsar last Sunday, on a peaceful religious congregation in one of our villages, in which 3 men were killed and 19, including women and children, were wounded,” Captain Amarinder further pointed out, adding that both terrorists had since been caught.
“I hope the Prime Minister will understand that under these circumstances it will not be possible for me to be present in Pakistan on this historic occasion, despite the fact that paying my respects at Gurdwara Sri Kartarpur Sahib has always been my cherished dream which will hopefully be fulfilled once these hostilities and killings are stopped,” the Chief Minister has stated.
In a letter to Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi, the Chief Minister has welcomed the historic occasion, which he described as the cherished desire of the Sikhs around the world, but said he must most reluctantly, however, regret his inability to be present.
The Chief Minister said his reasons for declining the invitation were twofold. Firstly, “Not a day passes when Indian soldiers are not killed or wounded on the line of control in Jammu and Kashmir,” he said, adding that, “Rather than moving towards normalcy these incidents are escalating.”
Secondly, the Chief Minister accused the ISI of starting its “nefarious activities within Punjab.” He also said that since his Government was sworn in, in March 2017, the state had neutralized 19 ISI armed and controlled modules, apprehended 81 terrorists and recovered 79 weapons, in addition to numerous grenades of the HG 84 type made in Pakistan’s Ordnance factories, with Austrian knowhow, along with seizure of some IEDs. “The last attack was in Amritsar last Sunday, on a peaceful religious congregation in one of our villages, in which 3 men were killed and 19, including women and children, were wounded,” Captain Amarinder further pointed out, adding that both terrorists had since been caught.
“I hope the Prime Minister will understand that under these circumstances it will not be possible for me to be present in Pakistan on this historic occasion, despite the fact that paying my respects at Gurdwara Sri Kartarpur Sahib has always been my cherished dream which will hopefully be fulfilled once these hostilities and killings are stopped,” the Chief Minister has stated.