A 64-year-old Indian national, who was part of a group of over 450 Sikhs who went to Pakistan for a religious pilgrimage, passed away at the Wagah-Attari border after reportedly suffering a heart attack while returning, according to a media report on July 2.

Dev Singh Sidhu from Amritsar, Punjab, had come to Pakistan to participate in the 185th death anniversary of Maharaja Ranjit Singh and perform religious rites, The Express Tribune newspaper reported.

While returning to India with other Sikh pilgrims, Sidhu reportedly suffered a heart attack at the Indian immigration hall. Despite immediate medical assistance, he could not be revived, the report said.

Last week, at least 455 Sikhs arrived in Lahore from India to take part in festivities in connection with Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s death anniversary.

The restored statue of the first ruler of the Sikh Empire, Maharaja Ranjit Singh, which was earlier damaged by religious extremists, was also unveiled at Kartarpur Sahib in the presence of over 450 visiting Indian Sikhs.

The nine-foot-tall bronze statue of Maharaja Ranjit Singh was first installed at the Lahore Fort near his ‘samadhi’ in 2019. It was twice vandalised by activists of the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP).

The statue of the great Sikh ruler of Punjab was a gift to the people of the province from a body of the United Kingdom.

Maharaja Ranjit Singh founded the Sikh Empire, which ruled the northwest Indian subcontinent in the early half of the 19th century.