<span style="color: #222222;">India lodged a strong protest on Friday with Pakistan against harassment of Indian High Commission officials in Islamabad and the denial of their access to Indian pilgrims visiting that country. </span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">In a statement, the External Affairs Ministry said, despite having been granted prior travel permission, the Consular officials of the Indian High Commission in Islamabad, were harassed and denied access to meet the Indian pilgrims visiting Gurudwara Nankana Sahib and Gurudwara Sacha Sauda in Pakistan yesterday and day before. </span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">It said, the denial compelled the officials to return to Islamabad without performing their diplomatic and consular duties. </span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">MEA said, it is the third consecutive visit of the Indian Sikh pilgrims when Pakistan has prevented the High Commission officials from meeting the visiting Indian nationals on the pretext of security. </span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">It said, Islamabad is doing so to deflect attention from Pakistan's violation of the international legal instruments and conventions like the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations. </span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">It said, this is also in breach of the letter and spirit of the 1974 Bilateral Protocol on a visit to religious shrines and the Code of Conduct for the treatment of diplomatic or consular personnel in India and Pakistan. </span><br />''