Pakistan denies Indian claim it tried to strike Golden Temple

Pakistan rejected on Tuesday Indian military claims that it tried to target the Golden Temple in Amritsar in Indian state of Punjab with drones and missiles during a recent escalation in cross-border hostilities.

The Golden Temple, also known as Harmandir Sahib, is the holiest site in Sikhism and attracts millions of pilgrims each year. Any attack or perceived threat to the shrine carries deep religious and political implications.

Responding to media questions, Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the accusations were “categorically rejected” and described the allegations by a senior Indian Army officer as “baseless and incorrect.”

“We hold all places of worship in the highest esteem and cannot think of targeting a holy site like the Golden Temple,” the ministry said in a statement.

India's claim

The rebuttal came after Indian Army Major General Kartik C. Seshadri claimed Pakistan attempted to strike the Sikh shrine in the early hours of May 8 as retaliation for India’s Operation Sindoor, which targeted what New Delhi described as terrorist camps inside Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

According to Indian officials, air defense units deployed in Amritsar shot down all incoming drones and missiles. Seshadri described the Golden Temple as a “prime target” for Pakistan’s retaliatory assault, citing what he called credible intelligence.

Islamabad strongly denied any such attack, saying it was instead Indian forces that “targeted different places of worship in Pakistan” on the night of May 6 and 7.

“The allegations leveled by the Indian side cannot shift attention from this unacceptable act,” Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said.

The ministry also emphasized Pakistan’s role as a custodian of Sikh holy sites, including the Kartarpur Corridor, which offers visa-free access to pilgrims visiting Gurdwara Darbar Sahib from India.

“Pakistan is the proud custodian of many holy sites of the Sikh faith,” the statement said. “Any claim concerning Pakistan’s attempt to target the Golden Temple is absolutely baseless and incorrect.”

Tensions in South Asia

The exchange of claims follows a deadly escalation that began with the April 22 attack on tourists in Pahalgam, located in Indian-administered Kashmir.

The assault left at least 26 people dead. India has blamed Pakistan-based militants for the attack — a charge Pakistan has denied.

Operation Sindoor, launched in the early hours of May 7, was India’s military response, targeting what it described as terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

Over the following days, both sides exchanged missile, drone and artillery fire, killing dozens of people and raising fears of a wider conflict between the two nuclear-armed neighbors.

A ceasefire was reached after four days of intense fighting, though tensions remain high.

Kashmir, a Muslim-majority region, has long been at the center of hostilities between India and Pakistan. Both countries claim the territory in full but control parts of it. They have fought three wars since gaining independence from Britain in 1947, two of them over Kashmir.