Delhi, August 9: After being stopped by Pakistan at the Wagah border on Thursday citing security concerns, the Samjhauta Express, known as the harbinger of peace, reached Delhi early Friday morning. The train that runs between India and Pakistan was four and a half-hour behind its scheduled time. The train that arrived in Attari, carried 76 Indian and 41 Pakistani nationals. Samjhauta Express Arrives at Attari Border Hours After Pakistani Crew Members on Train Refused to Enter India, Watch Video.
From Attari, Samjhauta Express left at around 8 pm and was expected to reach the national capital at 3:30 am on Friday, but it arrived at 8 am. Yesterday, hundreds of passengers were stranded for several hours, waiting for security clearance, after the disruption in the services. After hours of waiting, the train headed for Lahore departed from Attari carrying 103 passengers, including 10 Pakistanis.
Tweet by ANI:
Delhi: Samjhauta Express train, carrying 76 Indian and 41 Pakistani nationals, has reached Delhi. It had departed from the Attari Railway Station at around 1:30 am today pic.twitter.com/YVVhV5BIgB
— ANI (@ANI) August 9, 2019
"We have decided to suspend the Samjhauta train service. Till I am Railways minister, Samjhauta Express train service will not operate." Pakistan Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said at a press conference in Islamabad. He added that train's bogies will be used for passengers travelling on the occasion of Eid.
However, railway officials in Delhi said that the train has not been suspended. This development comes after Pakistan decided to downgrade diplomatic ties with New Delhi over India's move to revoke special status of Jammu and Kashmir.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 09, 2019 09:31 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).