L.K. Advani, Leader of the Opposition (Lok Sabha)
writes letter to Gen. Pervez Musharraf
on Katasraj Temple renovation

Shri L.K. Advani, Leader of the Opposition (Lok Sabha), has written a letter to General Pervez Musharraf, President of Pakistan, expressing his deep appreciation of the progress being made in the Pakistani government’s initiative to renovate the historic Hindu temple complex at Katasraj near Lahore.

It may be recalled that Shri Advani had laid the foundation stone for the Katasraj temple renovation project during his visit to Pakistan in June 2005. The government of Pakistan recently sent a team of archeological experts to India to visit major Hindu pilgrimage centres in order to study the temple architecture and use that knowledge in the next phase of the project.

In his letter, Shri Advani expressed the hope that, after the completion of the project, Hindu pilgrims from India would be welcome to visit Katasraj Temple in the same way that thousands of Muslim pilgrims from Pakistan visit Ajmer Sharif and other holy Islamic shrines in India every year. “I eagerly look forward to that day,” he has said, adding, “The Katasraj project has the potential to promote mutual trust and goodwill between our two countries.”

Shri Advani has also appreciated Gen. Musharraf’s recent visit to a Shiva temple in Karachi and his statement to the Pakistani media: “Places of worship of all religions including Hinduism were an integral part of the culture of Pakistan and its geographical history. Maintaining such properties in good condition is a government priority in order to turn them into sites of bonding between religions.”

In the same context, Shri Advani has also written a letter to Chaudhary Shujaat Hussain, former Prime Minister of India and President of the Muslim League (Q). Chaudhary Shujaat Hussain had accompanied Shri Advani at the foundation stone laying function at Katasraj.

In a significant gesture, Shri Advani has stated in his letter: “It would be my pleasure to invite you to visit India, at your early convenience, so that we can together visit Ajmer Sharif and Akshardham, the newly constructed temple and cultural complex in New Delhi.”

The team of archeological experts from Pakistan, which visited India, had called on Shri Advani at his residence and apprised him of the progress of the renovation work at Katasraj so far. A copy of the press statement issued on that has been enclosed for ready reference.