As we live the last hours of the year 2019, The World Sikh News acknowledges the contribution of Janab Imran Khan -the honourable, handsome, hardworking, honest and visionary leader of Pakistan, who ushered in a new era of Sikh-Muslim brotherhood by taking the long-overdue initiative of building the Kartarpur Sahib corridor and vowing to preserve Sikh heritage in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.

GOD-FEARING IMRAN KHAN opened  new vistas of Sikhism-Islam understanding and fostering the bonding and brotherhood between the two Punjabs.The Sikh community will ever be grateful to Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, the government of Pakistan and the people of Pakistan, who have not just opened the gates across the Radcliff line, but have opened their hearts through the Kartarpur corridor initiative.

The vastness of the heart of Imran Khan was laid out to the Sikh world when he called Nankana Sahib the Mecca of the Sikhs and Kartarpur Sahib as the Madina of the Sikhs and said that just as a Muslim cannot be kept away from Mecca and Medina, similarly Sikhs cannot be delinked from Nankana Sahib and Kartarpur Sahib.

The grand style in which the government of Pakistan celebrated the 550 years of Guru Nanak -the issuance of postage stamps, special coins and currency, the establishment of the Baba Nanak University and the earlier passing of the Pakistan Anand Marriage Act, preservation and conservation of the heritage of historic and religious centres of the Sikhs in Pakistan will be cherished by Sikhs for all times to come.

It would not be wrong to say that there could not have been a better blessing than this to the Sikh community and for those who yearn for peace in South Asia in the 550^th year of Guru Nanak.

The World Sikh News believes that Allah Tallah chose Imran Khan and his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf party to bestow the credit of taking this remarkable step.

Imran Khan by this deft move took the whole Sikh world by surprise, awe and respect. In a world that is seeing the growth of hate and acrimony, this has taken the hatemongers by surprise.

The building of détente between India and Pakistan through the Kartarpur Peace Corridor is an event unparalleled in contemporary history.  A minuscule minority community -the Sikhs, through its love for Fatherhood of God and Brotherhood of Mankind has enabled this and this makes the community proud. 

The corridor opened by Imran Khan, his government and their artisans in record time, is not just a corridor for Sikh pilgrims, but a peace corridor. It is a corridor of peace, built not in fear of the strength or weakness of any peoples of the country but on the foundations of equality and justice. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf has done Insaaf- justice to the Sikhs, to the people of both the countries yearning for peace and has made itself proud of living up to its name.

Imran Khan’s call to fight poverty in South Asia, including in Pakistan and India, is a call that should not go unheeded. If governments invest more in education, health care and fighting poverty and less on defence, South Asia will not only be peaceful and prosperous but become an example for others to follow.

Taking a cue from Imran Khan, let us all be the torch-bearers of justice, peace, love and equality in South Asia.