- The group will return to India on 19 April.
About 2,238 Sikh pilgrims from India entered Pakistan through Attari Wagah Border on Friday to celebrate Baisakhi 2026 (Khalsa Foundation Day). This is the second Sikh contingent to visit Pakistan since Operation Sindoor began in May 2025, and the largest Sikh contingent so far amid restrictions imposed on cross-border travel by India.
Earlier, 1,932 pilgrims had visited Pakistan in November 2025 on the occasion of the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Ji, the founder of Sikhism.
In fact, the Pakistan High Commission had issued more than 2,800 visas to Indian Sikh pilgrims for the 10-day pilgrimage, during which the devotees will visit major Sikh temples.
- These include Gurdwara Panja Sahib in Hasan Abdal, Gurdwara Nankana Sahib (birthplace of Guru Nanak Ji).
- Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib (final resting place of Guru Nanak)
- Gurdwara Sacha Sauda Sahib in Farooqabad
- Gurdwara Dehra Sahib in Lahore
- Aminabad includes Gurdwara Rori Sahib.
Sikh group will return to India on April 19
After spending 2 days at Nankana Sahib, he will leave for Gurdwara Panja Sahib in Hasan Abdal, about 400 km from Lahore, where the main ceremony of Baisakhi will be organized on April 14. After this the group will return to India on 19 April.
The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) from Punjab has sent a batch of about 1763 pilgrims from its office located in the Golden Temple complex in Amritsar. This group was led by SGPC Executive Committee member Surjeet Tuglawal along with General Manager Harbhajan Singh.
On this occasion, SGPC Chief Secretary Kulwant Singh Mannan has urged the governments of both India and Pakistan to reopen the Kartarpur Corridor, which was opened during the 550th birth anniversary celebrations of Guru Nanak in 2019.
This corridor has been closed since May 7, 2025, when the Indian Armed Forces carried out Operation Sindoor, targeting terrorist hideouts in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, in response to the Pahalgam attack on April 22, in which 26 people were killed.
On the other side of the border, the Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee and government officials, including the Evacuee Trust Property Board, warmly welcomed the pilgrims and arranged for transportation facilities including langar service for them.
Delhi: On the occasion of the festival of Baisakhi, a delegation of devotees departed today from Gurdwara Rakab Ganj Sahib in Delhi. This delegation will travel to Pakistan via the Wagah Border, passing through Amritsar. pic.twitter.com/7GbcfI0lqs
— IANS (@ians_india) April 9, 2026
70 pilgrims stopped from crossing into India
About 70 pilgrims were stopped by the authorities from crossing the border due to lack of necessary permission from the Indian government. Angered by this, they also raised slogans against the government.
Baisakhi, celebrated as Khalsa Sajna Diwas in the Sikh community, holds immense religious significance for Sikhs across the world as it commemorates the establishment of the Khalsa Panth by Guru Gobind Singh in 1699.
Under the Nehru-Liaquat Agreement of 1950, Sikh pilgrims were allowed to visit Gurdwaras in Pakistan on four religious occasions, including the foundation day of the Khalsa Panth (Baisakhi), the martyrdom anniversary of the fifth Sikh Guru, Guru Arjan, the death anniversary of Maharaja Ranjit Singh and the birth anniversary of the founder of Sikhism, Guru Nanak Dev Ji.
But after the Pahalgam terrorist attack in 2025 last year, the central government banned Indian citizens from going to Pakistan through Attari-Wagah border post. In response, Pakistan suspended visas issued under the SAARC Visa Waiver Scheme for Indian citizens, except Sikh pilgrims.
A few days before the Pahalgam attack, more than 5 thousand Indian Sikh pilgrims had visited Gurudwaras in Pakistan on the occasion of Baisaki. This was the largest number of Sikh pilgrims to visit Pakistan so far.
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