A day after a lower court admitted a petition asserting that the Hanuman temple exists within the Dargah premises, Haji Syed Salman Chishty, head priest, Ajmer Sharif Dargah on Thursday appealed Supreme Court and Prime Minister Narendra Modi to act decisively against hate-mongers and uphold justice and unity.
"Ajmer Sharif is Ajmer Sharif….. It’s not just a part of history but a classic representation of Living History! The sanctity and sacredness of Ajmer Sharif must be and shall be preserved. Misusing courts and religious sentiments for divisive agendas defames revered Sufi shrines, erodes constitutional values, and threatens India’s harmony," Chishty wrote on X.
He further said, "We appeal to the Hon’ble Supreme Court and Prime Minister to act decisively against hate-mongers and uphold justice and unity. Let us honour Khwaja Gharib Nawaz’s timeless legacy of unconditional love, peace, and compassion."
On Wednesday, a lower court in Ajmer admitted a petition filed by Vishnu Gupta, National President of Hindu Sena, asserting that the Sankat Mochan Mahadev temple exists within the premises of the Ajmer Sharif Dargah.
The court presided over by Civil Judge Manmohan Chandel, has deemed the matter admissible and issued notices to the Ministry of Minority Affairs, the Dargah Committee Ajmer, and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), asking them to present their responses.
The next hearing is scheduled for December 20. The petition references retired judge Harvilas Sharda's 1911 book, Ajmer: Historical and Descriptive, which claims that debris from a Shiva temple was used in constructing the dargah. The petition also alleges that a Jain temple exists within the sanctum sanctorum of the site.
Gupta stated that Hindu traditions are visible around the Ajmer Dargah, including carvings on the Buland Darwaza. He urged the ASI to investigate the premises for evidence such as water sources often found near Shiva temples. Advocate Ramswaroop Bishnoi explained that the 38-page petition provides evidence supporting claims of a Shiva temple at the site, citing architectural similarities and references from historical texts. Examples from other disputed sites, such as Bhojshala in Madhya Pradesh and Benaras, are also mentioned in the plea.
The petition calls for the ASI to conduct a survey of the dargah premises. It also refers to the book’s claim that parts of the 75-foot-high Buland Darwaza were constructed using materials from the temple. According to the text, a Brahmin family once worshipped at the site, where a Shivling was located. Meanwhile, the Dargah Committee has denied the claims.
Syed Sarwar Chishti, secretary of Anjuman Syed Jadgan, an organisation of khadims of the Dargah in Ajmer, said that the Ajmer Dargah promotes unity in diversity and pluralism, the dargah has lakhs of followers all across the world from Afghanistan to Indonesia.
“Such acts are against communal harmony and nation. The court has issued notices to three parties today. We will see what we can do. Such acts of targeting age-old mosques in Kashi, Mathura are not good,” he said. He also blamed former CJI Chandrachoor for amending the rule. “We have seen challenging times, however, nothing has changed. This is garib nawaz dargah and it shall stay the same in future too,” he added.
--IANS