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Disputes may mar Musharraf's Ajmer visit

A row between the management of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti's dargah in Ajmer and the khadims, the people who assist visitors, has cast a shadow over Pakistan President Prevez Mushararraf's scheduled visit to the shrine on Monday.

According to the official programme, the president is scheduled to perform ziarat at the dargah on July 16 in the last leg of his three-day India visit.

Several khadims have staked their claim to play host to the general.

According to the custom, if a VVIP has no khadim, the anjuman, the body which looks after the internal management of the dargah, provides him one.

Several khadims have already sent their representations through various channels to the Pakistani president, dargah sources said.

Disputes over ziarat of VVIP visitors is not new. When former Bangladesh presidents H M Ershad and Zia-ur-Rahman visited the dargah, the management had faced a similar problem.

The Ajmer district administration, however, maintained that the job of helping the general in performing ziarat has been entrusted to the anjuman.

Meanwhile, the strict security at the dargah ahead of the president's arrival will affect several regular religious rituals.

Khidmat, an important ritual carried out by khadims every day between 1500 hrs and 1545 hrs after removing the flowers placed by the devotees on the tomb of the Sufi saint, is one such service.

According to the official programme, the dargah would be cleared of all visitors at 0900 hrs on July 16 and only those in possession passes would be allowed in.

Consequently, about 10,000 visitors from all over the world visiting the dargah every day will be denied the opportunity to perform ziarat on July 16.

Officials say permission is likely to be granted to visitors for the afternoon prayer at Shahjahani Mosque, one of the three mosques inside the dargah.

Another dispute is over Dargah Diwan Jainual Abedeen accompanying the president around the dargah. The Diwan has written a letter to the district collector threatening that he would boycott the visit if he was denied the honour.

The anjuman, however, believes that the Diwan's role is restricted to the 'Nizam Gate'.

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