Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Amarinder Singh on Sunday night strongly advocated peace and friendship with Pakistan to enable both countries to move forward towards development and progress.

The CM, however, said India would not allow ISI-backed forces such as the Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) to disturb its harmony and stability. He said this while addressing Indian Diaspora on the sacred occasion of the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev.

In an informal chat with reporters, Amarinder said SFJ was a hardcore terrorist group with no ideological basis for its campaign and had to be treated as such. Describing SFJ’s so-called legal advisor Gurpatwant Singh Pannu as a fraud, operating under the directions of Pakistan’s ISI, the CM said Pannu’s sole motive was to divide the Sikhs and India to promote the ISI agenda.

Referring to the terror modules busted in Punjab in the past couple of years along with large-scale arrests and seizure of weapons, he said these had exposed SFJ’s intentions but both the Punjab government and the Indian government were dealing with it with an iron hand.

Earlier, addressing the Diaspora, the CM called for cordial and friendly relations with neighbours to promote peace in line with  Guru Nanak Dev’s philosophy, for the collective resolution of global problems.

Both India and Pakistan had been through a lot, and it was time now for them to let go of the past and move forward in the spirit of friendship to ensure their respective progress, he stressed.

Citing the Kartarpur Corridor as a beginning towards better relations between India and Pakistan, Amarinder hoped it would set the stage for the opening of other important religious shrines in Pakistan to Indians seeking ‘khulle darshan deedar.’

The CM reiterated his demand for waiver of passport condition and the $20 fee for travel through the Kartarpur Corridor pointing out that India had never imposed any such tax on those visiting Ajmer Sharif and Nizamuddin Dargah etc. from across the border.

Pointing to Guru Nanak’s philosophy of oneness of God, the CM underlined the need to rise above religion and caste to protect the future and facilitate the development of Punjab and its people.

What the founder Guru of Sikhism had indicated 550 years ago was happening now, he said, pointing to global problems like pollution and water scarcity. He stressed the need for friendship and togetherness to tackle these problems and look ahead, towards the creation of a better future for the next generation.