India-Pakistan Sada-e-Sarhad bus diverted after protests by Hindutva outfits

Phagwara (Punjab): The Lahore-Delhi Sada-e-Sarhad bus was diverted on Monday due to a demonstration by Hindutva outfits, including the Shiv Sena, against the terror attack on Amarnath pilgrims in Kashmir, the police said. [caption id=“attachment_3192638” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. AFP.[/caption] However, the other Sada-e-Sarhad bus, coming from Delhi and headed to Lahore, followed its normal route, they added. The protesters assembled at the Hanuman Garhi temple complex, before marching towards the PWD rest house here while shouting anti-Pakistan slogans, a police officer said, adding that they burnt a Pakistani flag near the rest house opposite National Highway 1. The protesters also threatened that they would not allow any bus with Pakistani nationals to pass through Phagwara. Security arrangements were beefed up, which allowed the Lahore-bound bus to pass through Phagwara peacefully. But, the Delhi-bound Sada-e-Sarhad bus was diverted through the Kartarpur-Kapurthala-Nakodar-Phillaur route. Seven Amarnath pilgrims were killed and 19 injured when their bus came under terrorists’ gunfire in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district on Monday night. Sada-e-Sarhad is a passenger bus service connecting Delhi to the Pakistani city of Lahore via the Wagah border. Started in 1999, it is a six-day-a-week service.