India sent a demarche notice to Pakistan over the alleged detention and harassment of two of its diplomats in Farooqabad in April, IANS reported on Saturday. India’s Ministry of External Affairs has reportedly asked Pakistan to conduct an inquiry into its claims and demanded that it prevent such an occurrence in the future.
The ministry also expressed concern about the security of the Indian High Commission in Islamabad.
India claimed that the incident took place on April 17, when around 15 Pakistani intelligence personnel accosted two Indian diplomats in Farooqabad. The Indian diplomats were purportedly working on facilitating the travel of Sikh pilgrims when the intelligence personnel took them to a room in the Gurdwara Sacha Sauda Sahib, locked them up and questioned them for 20 minutes, The Wire reported. India claimed that the personnel searched the bags and questioned them about their role in the Indian High Commission.
In its complaint, India alleged that the Pakistani intelligence personnel warned the diplomats against visiting the shrine again.
In November, India had lodged a strong protest against the harassment of its consular officials visiting Pakistan with Sikh pilgrims, saying they were denied access. The reaction came a day after both countries agreed to develop the Kartarpur corridor to provide Sikh pilgrims easy access to the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib located in Pakistan.
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