Sikh body remains in control of temple in Kartarpur, Pakistan tells India

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's foreign office on Thursday rejected Indian reports that the Pakistani Sikh community had been deprived of control over the Kartarpur gurdwara, one of the holiest shrines of Sikhism.
India's foreign ministry on Thursday said that it had received complaints from members of the Sikh community that Pakistan had transferred control of the gurdwara from a Sikh body to a separate trust, which was against "the religious sentiments of the Sikh community at large."
In response, the Pakistani foreign office issued a statement saying that "any insinuations regarding 'transferring' the affairs of the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur" from the Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (PSGPC) to a unit of the Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) are not only contrary to the facts but also aimed at creating religious disharmony."
ETPB is a government body that administers evacuee properties, including religious trusts, left behind by Hindus and Sikhs who migrated to India in 1947 when the two countries gained independence from Britain.
"The PSGPC remains responsible for carrying out rituals in Gurdwara Sahiban, including Kartarpur as per Sikh Rehat Maryada. The Project Management Unit (PMU) under the Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) has simply been created to facilitate the PSGPC in this regard," the foreign office said.
It added: "The Sikh community from all over the world remains greatly appreciative of the efforts made by Pakistan to complete the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor Project."
In November last year, Pakistan opened a visa-free passage, the Kartarpur corridor, connecting Gurdwara Darbar Sahib to the border with India and allowing Indian Sikh pilgrims to visit the site.
The opening of the corridor on Nov. 9, 2019 marked the first time Sikh pilgrims from India could enter Pakistan without a visa since 1947.
Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur is of particular importance to the Sikh community, as it was built in tribute to Guru Nanak, the founder of the Sikh religion who established the town of Kartarpur in 1515.