Pak high commission issues 96 visas to Indian pilgrims

Pakistan on Monday issued 96 visas to a group of Indian pilgrims to visit the Katas Raj Temple during December 20-25, Pakistan high commission said on Monday.

Visas are issued to Sikh and Hindu pilgrims from India in line with the Pakistan government’s efforts to facilitate visits to religious shrines, the Pakistan high commission in New Delhi said in a statement.

Each year, a sizeable number of Sikh and Hindu pilgrims from India visit Pakistan to participate in various religious festivals and occasions. “A large number of Indian Hindus are also issued visas by the Pakistan high commission to visit their families and friends in Pakistan,” the statement said.

Charge d’affaires Aftab Hasan Khan, the senior-most diplomat at the Pakistani mission, wished the Indian pilgrims a “spiritually rewarding pilgrimage and underlined that Pakistan remains committed to preserving sacred religious sites and providing all possible assistance to the visiting pilgrims of all faiths.”

The visit of Indian pilgrims to the Katas Raj Temple is covered under the bilateral Protocol on Visits to Religious Shrines of 1974.

Katas Raj Temple is situated in the Punjab province’s Chakwal district.