Several candidates, including Taranjit Singh Sandhu, the BJP's Amritsar candidate, are promising resumption of India-Pakistan trade via the Attari-Wagah land route.
In the bustling streets of Amritsar, the echoes of foreign policy debates have transcended the power corridors and found resonance in the Lok Sabha elections.
"With one of the highest numbers of people emigrating each year, foreign policy is a subject of significant importance in the state. However, one aspect of foreign policy has been affecting Punjab -- trade with Pakistan," a wholesaler near the Golden Temple articulates the pinch of this issue.
Since the Pulwama terror attack in 2019, India's trade with Pakistan has steadily declined.
India revoked its most-favoured nation status for Pakistan and imposed a 200 per cent import duty on Pakistani products.
The situation worsened after Parliament revoked sections of Article 370 and 35(A) of the Constitution.
Pakistan, too, has had its share of indecision regarding the resumption of trade with India.
On Pakistan Day, March 23, 2024, its foreign minister, Ishaq Dar, announced that the government was 'seriously considering' resuming trade ties with India.
However, just days later, Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch clarified that no such plan was under discussion.
The issue of trade ties with Pakistan has become a focal point in electoral campaigning in Punjab.
Several candidates, including Taranjit Singh Sandhu, the Bharatiya Janata Party's Amritsar candidate, are promising resumption of India-Pakistan trade via the Attari-Wagah land route.
Sandhu has even suggested Dubai as a transit point for goods to and from Pakistan.
The Shiromani Akali Dal's manifesto also addresses the issue.
SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal questioned why trade with Pakistan could be allowed through Gujarat ports but not through Punjab's road network.
'We will raise the demand for the restoration of international trade with neighbouring countries,' Badal said, said while releasing the manifesto.
This trade impasse has significantly impacted Punjab's traders.
"Pakistani suits and salwars had gained popularity here, especially after Pakistani TV serials gained fame. However, the majority of these items now come via Dubai, increasing the cost of each suit piece by nearly Rs 400," says a shopkeeper at Gulati Creations, a shop in the Old City of Amritsar.
"This cost is passed down to the customer, making a significant difference to the lower-income group," he adds.
Trade with Pakistan continues, albeit with a significantly increased transactional cost.
"The movement of goods to Pakistan is exclusively via sea routes," says Nisha Taneja, a professor at ICRIER.
"Despite a substantial increase in trade with Pakistan in FY24, the rail and road routes through Atari/Wagah have been non-operational since 2019. This has had a direct impact on the trading community in Punjab," adds Taneja.
Some, however, remain conflicted about the issue.
Anil Mehra, president of the Federation of Karyana and Dry Fruit Commercial Association, notes: "It (trade) was first stopped by Pakistan after the abrogation (of Article 370).
"After this. India imposed the higher duty. For us, the country is a priority. Business is secondary."
Mehra believes that both India and Pakistan need to work together for trade to be beneficial.
"Nearly 500 trucks crossed from both sides of the border every day. A lot of labourers and transportation people were involved, besides others.
"More than India, Pakistan would have been affected as a lot of things that are relatively expensive there can be imported from India," he adds.
Farmers in the state also believe that resuming trade ties would be hugely beneficial for the state and the country as a whole.
They argue that Punjab, being an agrarian state, would greatly benefit from the trade.
"See Pakistan, Afghanistan, and other neighbouring countries in our west don't have large tracts of as fertile land as ours.
"So if foodgrain is sent via the Attari border, it'll be hugely beneficial on both sides," says Gurcharan Singh, a farmer.
"The Attari border is roughly 15 km from here (Amritsar) but we have to send a large portion of our produce to a port in Gujarat, and then it is shipped to these countries. Moreover, geopolitical tensions have made these sea routes unsafe," Singh adds.
Trade ties with Pakistan have also been a subject of debate among the sports industry in Jalandhar.
While Jalandhar's sports industry in Jalandhar has been reeling from a number of issues, Pakistan's has seen its stature grow over the years, with a majority of the balls used in the FIFA World Cup 2022 manufactured there.
A sports retailer in Jalandhar said: "The industry would truly get a boost if trade ties via the border are resumed.
"A lot of hockey sticks in Jalandhar came from Pakistan. If we want to make bats using English willows, we can't. They don't give the raw material to us."
"We used to get readymade bats, which were of great quality, from Pakistan. And they were quite cheap."
"I agree trade with Pakistan shouldn't happen at the cost of national security. But it has been a long time since the attacks," he adds. "The next government should look into establishing some ties."
Photographs curated by Manisha Kotian/Rediff.com
Feature Presentation: Ashish Narsale/Rediff.com
