ISLAMABAD: The Khalistan movement is a Sikh separatist movement aiming to carve a separate independent homeland for the world Sikh community, the proposed country of Khalistan would constitute the Indian state of Punjab, the states of Haryana and Himachal Pradesh in addition to some other parts of India.
Before the meeting in Attari sources from New Delhi expressed their anxiety about the possibility of Sikh’s taking advantage of the Kartarpur Corridor agreement to facilitate their separatist movement.
The sources from New Delhi hinted that India could demand some surety from Pakistan on preventing the supporters of Khalistan movement from taking advantage of the agreement in furthering their cause and from influencing the Sikh pilgrims visiting the Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib.
This notion has already been rejected by Pakistan and it is expected that Dr. Mluhammad Faisal Chaudhary, who is heading the Pakistani delegation is not entertaining it either. “We have the Mecca and Medina of the Sikhs… and we are just opening up those sites for Sikhs,” according to an earlier statement from Pakistani PM Imran Khan.
Pakistan has already made it very clear that it does not intend to politicize an initiative it took in good faith to facilitate the Sikh pilgrims that flock to Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib to perform their religious rites.
In the wake of recent talks, the Indian paranoia over the Khalistan movement is only creating confusion. Even the Indian media is trying to cast doubt about the Pakistani intent behind the KartarPur agreement by making allegations that the Pakistan PM Imran Khan met with the Khalistan separatist Gopal Singh Chawla ahead of Kartarpur talks.
Meanwhile in India, only a month back, Sikhs held a protest against the life imprisonment awarded by the Nawanshahr Sessions Court to three Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) activists “for mere possession of literature to incite the Khalistan movement”.
Sikhs have been holding similar demonstrations for their rights since the start of this year, throughout the world. One was held in Washington on India’s Republic day demanding for the secession of Indian-held Punjab to establish an independent country of “Khalistan,” according to a press release issued by a Sikh advocacy organization.