Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh has urged the Centre for the expeditious resolution of the issue of the opening up of the Kartarpur corridor for the preparedness of 550th birth anniversary of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji.Talking to the media persons after inaugurating a private marriage palace here this afternoon, the Chief Minister said that being a bilateral issue, this needed the active engagement of both India and Pakistan for its resolution.He had personally met the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister with the request to take up the issue with Pakistan, the Chief Minister pointed out, adding that he had even raised the issue during his visit to the neighbouring country during his previous stint as Chief Minister. The issue was of enormous religious significance for the Sikh sangat, he added.Captain Amarinder Singh recalled that his grandfather Maharaja Bhupinder Singh had donated Rs 1.35 Lac to save the historic gurudwara of Sri Kartarpur Sahib from ravage by the Ravi river waters during the 1920s.The Chief Minister, in response to a question, said his government was fully geared to commemorate the 550th birth anniversary celebrations of the first Sikh Guru. The executive committee set up to monitor the progress of the commemoration of this mega event had already finalised the development works to be executed in the historic towns of Sultanpur Lodhi and Dera Baba Nanak. Further, he said that on his request, the Centre had formed a national committee chaired by the Union Home Minister.
Responding to another query, Captain Amarinder Singh described the landslide victory of Congress party in the Zilla Parishads and Block Samitis elections as an acknowledgement of the people’s trust and confidence in its development oriented policies and pro-people initiatives of the Congress government. The humiliating defeat of SAD and other opposition parties showed that the people had completely rejected their sectarian politics and had given a clear verdict in the favour of development and secular credentials of the Congress Governement. The Chief Minister credited the sweeping victory to the hard work of the workers and the faith shown in the Congress by the people, who had come out in large numbers to support the ruling party. He rubbished the allegations of hooliganism, made by the Akalis, as nothing but frustration at their ignominious defeat. The Congress had won 94 percent of Zila Parishad and nearly 81 percent Block Samitis in these polls.Prominent among others who were present on the occasion were Cabinet Ministers Brahm Mohindra, Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa, Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaria, Sadhu Singh Dharamsot, Razia Sultana, Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi, Senior Advisor to Chief Minister B I S Chahal, Chairman Mandi Board Lal Singh, MLA Fatehgarh Sahib Kuljit Singh Nagra, MLA Rajpura Hardyal Singh Kamboj, DGP Suresh Arora, DGP-cum-STF Chief Mohammad Mustafa, DGP Intelligence Dinkar Gupta, DGP-cum-Chief Director Vigilance B K Uppal, Special Chief Secretary K B S Sidhu, and ACS Vini Mahajan and Principal Secretary Rural Development & Panchayats Anurag Verma.