Pakistan minister invites Indian Punjab CM to Lahore cultural conference amid travel uncertainty

Pakistan’s Punjab government has invited Indian Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann to a Punjabi cultural conference in Lahore from November 27 to 29.

Minority affairs minister Ramesh Singh Arora extended the invitation in the provincial assembly on Tuesday, after Mann said he wished to attend but doubted New Delhi would allow it.

Who invited Bhagwant Mann to the Lahore conference?

Ramesh Singh Arora, Pakistan’s provincial minister for minority affairs, extended the invitation on behalf of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz. He told the provincial assembly that Mann and Indian lawmakers would be welcomed in Pakistan, adding that members of both the ruling party and opposition in the Indian Punjab Assembly were invited.

“Pakistan is waiting for you. We will welcome you with open hearts and smiling faces,” Arora said in remarks delivered in Punjabi.

Why is Mann’s travel to Lahore uncertain?

Mann said last week that he wanted to attend the fourth International Punjabi Conference, scheduled to take place in Lahore from November 27 to 29. Speaking in the Indian Punjab Assembly, he questioned whether India’s federal government would permit the visit. He said he had not been allowed to travel to France or Japan.

Mann also cited the shared cultural heritage of the two regions, saying people on both sides of the international border had common roots and faced similar problems. He said poets and other participants from Indian Punjab were expected to attend the conference.

The invitation comes amid strained relations between the nuclear-armed neighbors, whose ties have been marked by longstanding disputes and restrictions on cross-border movement. Although Punjabi language, literature and religious heritage connect communities on both sides, political tensions have complicated travel and other exchanges. Mann’s attendance remains uncertain, with any visit dependent on the necessary travel permissions and prevailing arrangements between the two countries.

What did Arora say about the Kartarpur Corridor?

Arora also invited the speaker of the Indian Punjab Assembly to visit Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur, one of Sikhism’s holiest sites. He urged India to facilitate access for pilgrims through the Kartarpur Corridor.

The corridor, inaugurated in 2019, links Dera Baba Nanak in India’s Punjab with the shrine in Pakistan, allowing Indian Sikh pilgrims to visit without a visa under a bilateral arrangement. Pakistan’s religious affairs ministry says the arrangement provides for up to 5,000 pilgrims daily. Arora said the number of pilgrims permitted had been restricted to 500 and called for the corridor to remain accessible.

What is Punjab doing for religious minorities?

Arora highlighted restoration work at religious sites in Pakistan’s Punjab province, saying work was under way at 50 gurdwaras, temples and historic churches. More than 10 gurdwaras in Kasur district had been restored on Maryam Nawaz’s instructions, he added.

He said the provincial government was committed to protecting religious minorities, recalling Maryam Nawaz’s first address to the provincial assembly, in which she described minorities as a crown upon her head.

The government would also hold Diwali celebrations in Rahim Yar Khan on November 4 and Lahore on November 6, followed by events marking Christmas and Guru Nanak Jayanti, Arora said.