Kartarpur corridor: Two sikh ministers to present India

New Delhi: India on Saturday responded positively on the invitation for the groundbreaking ceremony of the Kartarpur corridor in Pakistan.

Union ministers Harsimrat Kaur Badal and Hardeep Singh Puri will travel to Pakistan for the groundbreaking ceremony.

External Minister Sushma Swaraj, on Saturday, welcomed the invitation to attend the Kartarpur corridor ceremony which is scheduled to take place on November 28. She, however, expressed her inconvenience citing other engagements on the day.

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Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi had invited his Indian counterpart to attend the ceremony of the Kartarpur corridor, that links India’s border district of Gurdaspur with the historic Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan.

In her letter to Qureshi, Sushma Swaraj said:

"However, being mindful of the sentiments of our Sikh citizens and the importance of facilitating their smooth and easy access to holy Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib, we will be sending Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Minister for Food Processing Industries, and Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of State for Housing and Urban Affairs, as government of India's representatives for the event planned for November 28.

It is our hope that the government of Pakistan will expedite the construction of the corridor in order to ensure that our citizens can pay their respect at the Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib using the corridor as soon as possible."

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Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and cabinet minister Navjot Singh Sidhu are also among the invitees.

“On behalf of Pakistan I have extended an invitation to External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Capt Amarinder Singh & Navjot Singh Sidhu to attend the groundbreaking ceremony at Kartarpura on Nov 28, 2018,” Qureshi tweeted.