Punjab Assembly passes resolution for Kartarpur corridor

Punjab Assembly, led by Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh, on Monday unanimously passed a resolution asking the Central government to pursue with Pakistan the issue of opening of the Kartarpur Sahib corridor during the 550th birthday celebrations of the first Sikh master, Guru Nanak Dev.

The resolution was moved by the Chief Minister, and all the members, cutting across the party lines, were of the view that the opening of the corridor would enable millions of Indian devotees to pay obeisance at the historic Sri Kartarpur Sahib Gurdwara.

The Gurdwara, where the first Sikh Guru spent the last years of his life, is located in Pakistan across the international border, though it is clearly visible from Dera Baba Nanak in Punjab's Gurdaspur district.

Moving the resolution, the Chief Minister informed the House that he had already written to Union External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj to take up the issue with her Pakistani counterpart.

The Punjab government, he said, had been urging the Government of India, time and again, to take up the matter with Islamabad. The opening of the corridor was a cherished dream of the Sikh community, he added.