‘Cricket a game, pilgrimage is faith’: MP Randhawa urges PM Modi to allow Nankana Sahib visit, reopen Kartarpur Corridor

Randhawa said Punjabi families here have, with folded hands and moist eyes, watched elders finally cross the international border—without visa, but with utmost security checks —to bow their heads at Sri Kartarpur Sahib, the land tilled by Guru Nanak Dev himself.

‘For us, it is not leisure but maryada’

“To now slam this door shut is to reopen an old wound. With humility I submit: this decision cannot be justified on any ground—security, logistics, or optics-especially when the nation is willing and able to field our cricket team against Pakistan in a high-profile fixture abroad, organised under ICC/BCCI arrangements,” he wrote.

The MP said that if the Government of India can facilitate the movement of players, officials, and broadcasters for a sporting event, “surely it can also facilitate the strictly regulated, identity-verified movement of peaceful pilgrims for darshan.”

Randhawa added that while cricket is a game, pilgrimage is faith. “For us, it is not leisure. It is maryada. As a Punjabi and a Sikh, I ask you to consider how this reads to the ordinary devotee: that in the name of security, a Sikh seeking matha tekna (prostration) at Nankana Sahib or Panja Sahib is riskier than a commercial spectacle on a global stage. Imagine if New Delhi were to tell Hindu citizens that the Kailash-Mansarovar Yatra stands banned ‘until further notice’, or to tell Indian Muslims that Haj or Umrah visas will not be processed – there would be nationwide anguish.”

He asked if the Centre would ever prevent Indian Christians from visiting Bethlehem, the birthplace of Christ and said that religious journeys possess a sanctity that should be insulated from day-to-day geopolitics.

MP suggests daily quotas, tighter security measures

“There also exists an established bilateral architecture. Under the 1974 Protocol on Visits to Religious Shrines—honoured for decades—Indian Sikh jathas have visited historic Gurdwaras in Pakistan on specified occasions, and Pakistan’s pilgrims have visited shrines in India. This is not an ad hoc indulgence; it is a recognised, rules-based channel for managed religious travel. I urge the Government to uphold both the spirit and the letter of this framework,” said the MP.

Stating that he recognised and respected the Prime Minister’s responsibility when it comes to national security, Randhawa said the “correct answer to risk is not a blanket prohibition on faith, it is smarter regulation”.

The MP suggested tightened operational controls, including capped daily quotas, advanced online registration, layered ID and biometrics, real-time manifests, and Home Ministry-approved travel operators as increased security measures at the Kartarpur Corridor.

He also suggested enhanced coordination with the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), the state police, Intelligence Bureau, Border Security Force, and Pakistani authorities for secure movement and contingency cover.

‘Indefinite bans erode trust’

“If specific, articulable threats exist, define calibrated thresholds that trigger temporary, narrowly tailored pauses, never indefinite bans that erode trust. Restore orderly, escorted, same-day pilgrim movement from Dera Baba Nanak at the earliest, with any flood-related or security-related closures lifted as soon as repairs and risk assessments permit,” said Randhawa.

The MP asked PM Modi to withdraw the advisory halting the November jatha, announce a date for resumption of movement along the Kartarpur Corridor with updated security measures and convene within the next week, a joint review with the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Punjab government, SGPC, and representatives of recognised Sikh bodies.

“I am ready to meet you at your earliest convenience with a small delegation of representatives from Gurdaspur and the SGPC. Please also place this letter before the Hon’ble Prime Minister and the Hon’ble External Affairs Minister; the matter touches foreign policy, border management, and the lived faith of millions,” said the MP.