Dozens of Indian Sikh pilgrims crossed into Pakistan at the Wagah-Attari border — the first major crossing since May's deadly clashes between India and Pakistan. Pakistan had issued more than 2,100 visas for a 10-day festival marking Guru Nanak's 556th anniversary; pilgrims will visit Nankana Sahib and Kartarpur. The move comes amid elevated tensions after May fighting that killed over 70 people; the visa-free Kartarpur Corridor remains closed.
Indian Sikh Pilgrims Make First Large Crossing into Pakistan Since May Clashes
Dozens of Indian Sikh pilgrims crossed into Pakistan at the Wagah-Attari border — the first major crossing since May's deadly clashes between India and Pakistan. Pakistan had issued more than 2,100 visas for a 10-day festival marking Guru Nanak's 556th anniversary; pilgrims will visit Nankana Sahib and Kartarpur. The move comes amid elevated tensions after May fighting that killed over 70 people; the visa-free Kartarpur Corridor remains closed.
14:17, 04.11.2025Conflict
Dozens of Indian Sikh Pilgrims Enter Pakistan at Wagah-Attari
Pakistan on Tuesday welcomed dozens of Sikh pilgrims from India in what AFP reporters described as the first substantial crossing at the Wagah-Attari border since deadly clashes in May forced the frontier to be largely shut.
More than 2,100 pilgrims were granted visas by Pakistan's High Commission in New Delhi to attend a 10-day festival marking the 556th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism. Pakistani officials greeted arrivals with flowers and scattered rose petals as they entered.
AFP journalists on the Pakistani side saw dozens of pilgrims walking through the crossing while Indian authorities monitored the movement on their side. Indian media reported that roughly 1,700 people were expected to cross, though Indian officials did not immediately confirm that figure.
The pilgrims are scheduled to assemble at Nankana Sahib — Guru Nanak's birthplace, about 80 kilometres (50 miles) west of Lahore — and later visit other sacred sites in Pakistan, including Kartarpur, where the guru is buried. Pakistan said its visa decision was part of efforts to promote "inter-religious and inter-cultural harmony and understanding."
Background: Tensions between Islamabad and New Delhi remain high after the worst fighting since 1999 erupted in May. The four-day exchange of missiles, drones and artillery left more than 70 people dead and led to the closure of the Wagah-Attari crossing to general traffic. The Kartarpur Corridor — a visa-free route opened in 2019 allowing Indian Sikhs to reach the Kartarpur shrine without passing through the main border gate — has remained closed since that conflict.
The May clashes followed Indian allegations that Pakistan supported an attack on tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir on April 22, which Pakistan denied.
Sikhism, a monotheistic faith founded in the 15th century in the Punjab region, has many of its holiest sites on the Pakistani side of the modern border created at Partition in 1947. While most Sikhs migrated to India at Partition, shrines such as Nankana Sahib and Kartarpur remain important pilgrimage destinations for millions of Sikhs worldwide.
Reporting contributions: AFP. str-zz/abs/mtp