Lahore's Historic Gurdwara Chhevin Patshahi Reopens After 79 Years

A historic gurdwara in Lahore that had been closed since the Partition of 1947 reopened its doors on Sunday, marking the end of nearly eight decades of closure. Gurdwara Chhevin Patshahi Sri Guru Hargobind Sahib, located on Temple Road in the Mozang area, was restored to public use through a joint effort of the Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB), the Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (PSGPC) and the Punjab government.

A ceremony was held to commemorate the reopening after 79 years, drawing a large number of Sikh community members. Punjab Minister for Minorities and PSGPC President Sardar Ramesh Singh Arora attended the event along with ETPB Secretary Nasir Mushtaq, Deputy Secretary Shrines Usman Khan, Deputy Secretary General Saadat Shehbaz and other officials.

The gurdwara carries deep historical significance for the Sikh faith. It is associated with Guru Hargobind Sahib, the sixth of Sikhism's ten gurus, who lived from 1595 to 1644 and is remembered as a warrior-saint who worked to strengthen the Sikh community's ability to defend itself against religious oppression. According to Sikh historical accounts, Guru Hargobind accepted an invitation from the local congregation and stayed for three days at the home of Bhai Jiwan, a devotee living in Mozang, which was then on the outskirts of Lahore. Bhai Jiwan later turned his house into a gurdwara to honour the Guru's stay.

The site is also linked to Bhai Bidhi Chand, remembered in Sikh tradition for recovering two horses named Dilbagh and Gulbagh. According to these accounts, the horses had been seized by the Mughal governor of Lahore, identified in different versions as either Khalil Beg or Qasim Beg, from a devotee who intended to present them to Guru Hargobind Sahib. Bhai Bidhi Chand is said to have made two visits to Lahore and succeeded in retrieving both horses from the royal stables inside Lahore Fort, and is believed to have stayed at the gurdwara site during those visits.

The local Sikh congregation expanded the gurdwara hall in 1915, reflecting the site's long-standing importance to the community. Its reopening is being seen as a significant step for religious heritage preservation and minority affairs in Punjab, restoring access to a place of worship that had remained shuttered for generations.