Puri takes a jibe at Pak PM for his Sidhu remark

After Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan said Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu could also win election in his country, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri on Wednesday stated that he (Hardeep Singh Puri) had not yet asked if Sidhu were looking forward to changing his constituency.

Addressing media persons on his return to India here, after attending the groundbreaking ceremony of Kartarpur Corridor in Pakistan, Puri said, "Pakistan Prime Minister invited Sidhu to contest the election in Pakistan. I did not ask Sidhu what was his reaction and if he were shifting his constituency."

Talking about Kartarpur corridor, the Union Minister said that the talks to open the corridor had been going on in India for quite a long time and the decision was taken only after considering all the factors.

"In 1999 when late former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee went to Lahore and former Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal was a part of that delegation, Kartarpur corridor was raised during official talks. This demand has been there for long. The matter moved forward in November 2018," Puri said.

Earlier in the day, the Pakistan Prime Minister Khan in a tongue-in-cheek comment at the groundbreaking ceremony of the Kartarpur Corridor said, "I heard there was a lot of criticism of Sidhu when he went back after my oath-taking ceremony. I don't know why he was criticised for. He was just talking about peace and brotherhood. He can come and contest election here in Pakistan's Punjab. He will win."

Several dignitaries and ministers from both the countries attended that the Kartarpur Corridor groundbreaking ceremony held in Lahore. Indian Union Minister for Food Processing Industries Harsimrat Kaur Badal and Hardeep Singh Puri attended the event as representatives of the Indian government.

The Kartarpur route along the India-Pakistan border is three kilometres away from Gurdaspur, Punjab. Once opened, it would allow Sikh pilgrims a direct access to the historic gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur, Pakistan, where Guru Nanak died in 1539.