Kartarpur Politics

Two weeks after India had officially suspended the Kartarpur Corridor “until further notice,” tensions continue to run high following the cross-border military strikes.

The move came alongside India’s refusal to alter its stance on the Indus Waters Treaty, signalling a broader political posture rather than a case-by-case assessment. But for millions of Sikhs, the move means only one thing: their pilgrimage to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib-the resting place of Guru Nanak-has been made collateral in New Delhi’s political campaign.

In stark contrast, Pakistan, despite being the target of Indian aggression, chose not to shut its end of the corridor. “We will keep the gates open. Religion should not be hostage to politics,” said a senior Pakistani official. On the same day, India blocked its side, over 200 Sikh yatrees still arrived in Kartarpur from Pakistan and abroad. Could there be a greater sign of Pakistan’s efforts to safeguard religious sentiments while India weaponised it?

It is the latest in a long history of India’s indifference-and at times, hostility-toward Sikh religious sentiments. In 1984, Operation Blue Star saw Indian forces storm the Golden Temple, killing hundreds of worshippers. That same year, state-backed mobs lynched over 2,700 Sikhs in Delhi and elsewhere. No prime minister since has meaningfully apologised or ensured full justice. Today, those old scars are deepening under Modi’s Hindutva regime.

Since 2014, the BJP has made a habit of conflating minority identities with national security. Muslims were the first to be targeted through laws like CAA, NRC, and open mob violence. But Sikhs too have been increasingly vilified, especially after the 2020-21 farmers’ protests. Many Sikh activists abroad have reported intimidation, surveillance, and even assassination attempts. More recently, Canadian and U.S. authorities have both implicated Indian operatives in transnational plots to silence Sikh dissent. The Kartarpur Corridor was once called a “peace corridor:” a rare bridge built across deep political fault lines. That bridge is now being burned by India’s refusal to separate politics from pilgrimage. In punishing Sikh yatrees for geopolitical grievances they had no role in, New Delhi is not projecting strength. It is, regrettably, reinforcing a reputation for exclusion and deepening alienation among its own people. *