BAHRAICH: Amid a ban by the district administration on the fair held at the tomb of Syed Salar Masood Ghazi in Bahraich, the national president of BJP Minority Front, Jamal Siddiqui, offered a 'chaddar' at the dargah on the occasion of Urs and said he considers Ghazi a "saint".
On May 3, the Bahraich district administration denied permission for the annual 'Jeth Mela' traditionally held at the dargah.
In an official statement, the administration cited the prevailing atmosphere of public anger following incidents like the Pahalgam attack and Sambhal violence and concerns surrounding the amended Waqf Act as the reasons.
The Jeth Mela, originally scheduled to take place from May 15 to June 15, was expected to draw lakhs of pilgrims from India and abroad.
Replying to queries, Siddiqui told reporters that there can be a ban on the fair, but there is no ban on Urs.
"People are coming for pilgrimage. Syed Sahab's status is very high. Lakhs of people come here to pay obeisance and have benefited from him. I have also come here to pray with my father," he said.
The ban on the fair came in the backdrop of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's remarks against glorifying "invaders".
During a visit to Bahraich on March 20 this year, the CM had praised the bravery of Maharaja Suheldev, who is believed to have defeated Salar Ghazi, and said that "glorifying the invader means strengthening the foundation of treason".
Asked about Adityanath's remarks, Siddiqui told reporters, "Yogi ji is the chief minister of our state. I don't know in what context he said this. Yogi ji's faith, knowledge and information are at their place, but I believe in Ghazi Baba."
He said, "When I was six months old, I was brought here. I have been coming here since then. Today, I have come here because of my faith and we have the right to follow our faith."
On the question of Ghazi being called an "invader", Siddiqui said, "Ghazi Baba was born in Ajmer in 1014 and he died in 1034. Now, it is not possible to dig out tales that date back to one thousand years. But according to the miracles that I have seen with my own eyes from my birth till today, Ghazi Baba is a saint, a 'siddha purush'. He is a 'Peer' and Wali Allah."
"Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians all come here. The work of uniting the country is done here," Siddiqui said.
The Allahabad High Court had on May 17 declined to grant permission for organising the annual fair at the dargah.
However, in its order, the court's Lucknow bench allowed rituals and other related routine activities at the dargah.
Despite it being a holiday, the Chief Justice constituted a special bench comprising Justices AR Masoodi and Subhash Vidyarthi which issued the order after hearing the petitions filed by Waqf number 19, Dargah Sharif and two other Public Interest Litigations .
