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Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent claim that he would have 'taken' the Kartarpur Sahib Gurdwara in Pakistan during the 1971 Indo-Pak War has sparked a debate about whether India could have realistically achieved this objective.
While it is true that the Indian Army had a clear advantage in the Dera Baba Nanak sector during the war, there are several reasons why capturing the gurdwara was not a primary military objective.
First, the capture of the gurdwara would have required the Indian Army to advance beyond the strategically important enclave that they had already captured near the Ravi River.
This would have exposed the Indian forces to counterattacks from Pakistani troops and potentially prolonged the war.
Second, India did not have a clear political or strategic objective for capturing the gurdwara, as they did not intend to retain any territory of Pakistan that they captured during the war.
Third, the capture of the gurdwara would have likely been seen as a provocative act by Pakistan, and could have led to an escalation of the conflict.
For these reasons, it is unlikely that India would have been able to capture the Kartarpur Sahib Gurdwara during the 1971 Indo-Pak War, even if they had the military capability to do so.
The gurdwara remains a symbol of Sikh faith and a source of cultural and religious significance for both India and Pakistan.
Its location on the border between the two countries has made it a site of pilgrimage and a reminder of the shared history and culture of the region.
Source: Decode Politics: PM Modi says he would have ‘taken’ Kartarpar gurdwara in 1971. Could India have?