NEW DELHI, Aug 8: Pakistan stopped the Samjhauta Express at the Wagah border today, citing security concerns, following which an Indian crew and guard escorted the train to Attari on the Indian side, officials said.
Hundreds of passengers from both sides of the border were stuck for several hours waiting for security clearances to be completed following the disruption in the train service that connects Delhi and Lahore.
After several hours of waiting, the Samjhauta Express headed for Lahore departed from Attari at 6:41 pm with 103 passengers, including 10 Pakistanis, railway officials said.
The train that arrived in Attari, escorted by Indian crew members, had 117 passengers, including 48 Pakistanis, on board, they said.
A day after Islamabad downgraded diplomatic ties with New Delhi, Pakistan’s Federal Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed told the media in Islamabad that Pakistan has closed the Samjhauta Express train service with India.
However, Railway officials here said the train has not been suspended.
“The train has not been suspended. It will run. Pakistan authorities have raised some concerns with regards to security for crew and guard of the Samjhauta Express. We have told them the situation is normal on this side,” said Northern Railway spokesperson Deepak Kumar.
“Our engine with our crew and guard escorted the train to Attari at 5:15 pm,” he added.
Explaining the procedure, Kumar said the Samjhauta Express from both Lahore and Delhi halt at Attari.
At Attari, Delhi-bound passengers coming from Lahore get on to an Indian train. And Lahore-bound passengers board the Pakistani train that retraces its steps back to Wagah and then on to Lahore. In the Attari-Lahore run, the rakes change every six months — six months with Indian coaches and six months with Pakistani coaches.
On Thursday, the Samjhauta Express from Lahore did not reach Attari, but remained at Wagah on the Pakistan side.
Pakistani authorities briefly suspended the train service on February 28 this year following tense bilateral ties in the aftermath of the Pulwama terror attack in which 44 CRPF soldiers were martyred.
Meanwhile, Pakistan today banned the screening of Indian films in the country’s theatres, amid tensions between the two sides after New Delhi revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.
“No Indian film will be screened in any Pakistani theatre. Drama, films and Indian content of this kind will be completely banned in Pakistan,” Firdous Ashiq Awan, Special Advisor to Prime Minister Imran Khan for Information and Broadcasting, tweeted.
Meanwhile, India today termed Pakistan downgrading diplomatic ties with it as an attempt to present an alarming picture to the world about bilateral relations, and urged Islamabad to review its decision.
The Ministry of External Affairs said India regretted the steps announced by Pakistan on Wednesday and asserted that its decision on Jammu and Kashmir is an internal affair.
The Ministry said Pakistan negatively perceiving India’s developmental move is not surprising as the neighbouring country has utilised such sentiments to justify its cross-border terrorism.
“The Constitution of India was, is and will always be a sovereign matter. Seeking to interfere in that jurisdiction by invoking an alarmist vision of the region will never succeed,” the MEA said in a statement. (PTI)
Follow our WhatsApp channel
