The Kartarpur corridor opening which was seen as a confidence building measure for Indo-Pakistan ties is being used by politicos on either side of the border for different reasons other than peace.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi who is on the campaign trail in Rajasthan used Kartarpur to turn the heat on the Congress. The PM claimed that Kartarpur is in Pakistan only because the then Congress leaders had no idea about the importance of Guru Nanak Dev.
On the other side, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said Prime Minister Imran Khan bowled a “googly” to ensure the Indian government’s presence at the corridor ceremony. A statement which was immediately rejected by Khan who stated that it was purely a peace initiative and not double-talk with New Delhi.
The “googly” comment was however hit for a six by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj who said it only exposed the Pakistani minister who showed no respect for Sikh sentiments.
The corridor will connect Sikh faith’s founder Guru Nanak Dev’s final resting place in Pakistan’s Kartarpur to the Dera Baba Nanak shrine in Punjab’s Gurdaspur district in India. With this, a long-pending wish of the Sikh community will come true. But the larger question still remains unanswered. Can this decision to open the corridor after 20 years provide an impetus to better Indo-Pakistan ties? Can the corridor help in building new bridges of friendship?
Given the complexity of Indo-Pak ties, no corridor can help in building bridges across the two troubled nations. A lot needs to change if we are to see peace, including easing of tension along the international border. Complex strategic issues like nailing the key accused in 26/11, tackling terror and the vexed Kashmir dispute remain top on the agenda for India and Pakistan cannot expect any climb-down on these issues leaning on the corridor gesture.
Going by history, all peace initiatives are short-lived and Pakistan’s terror network has raised its ugly head every time confidence building measures took off. The corridor is no reason for India to celebrate, but a moment to exercise caution.
The proposed Kartarpur corridor will provide an unobstructed access to the shrine, but with terrorism clouding the landscape, the project will have major security implications. Civilians could be easy targets of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence. And all the pompous start to the corridor will end in a damp squib.
Secondly, this is probably the first time that Pakistan is using religious outreach as a confidence building measure. The entire gamut of issues where India and Pakistan are at conflict cannot be bridged by a corridor of faith. The complexity of issues is far deeper and diverse covering territories, people and terrorism.
The high-octane religious gesture will provide a welcome breather, but the two countries will have to move beyond the mysteries of faith and forge stronger ties. History has it that terrorism has managed to disrupt a series of peace initiatives that have been launched so far. Pakistan will have to hold their horses for at least six months when the work on the corridor is due for completion. Khan will have to walk the talk that this is not a ‘googly’ but a genuine delivery in the interest of better Indo-Pakistan ties. Time will tell.
