JAIPUR: Amid the controversy over the claims that the Ajmer Dargah is built over a Hindu temple, a record number of pilgrims attended the 813th Urs of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti. The turnout this year was double that of the previous year, dargah committee sources said. The rituals of Bade Kul and Jumme ki Namaz were observed with fervor.
Pilgrims from many countries, including 89 from Pakistan, thronged the dargah to seek the blessings of the Sufi saint. The rooms of over 6,000 hotels in Ajmer proved insufficient for the pilgrims. Locals opened their homes as makeshift guesthouses to accommodate the devotees.
The Anjuman Committee revealed that while no official record of chaadar offerings is maintained, an estimated 25,000 to 30,000 chaadar were presented daily during the Urs. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Rajasthan CM Bhajanlal Sharma, and Delhi former CM Arvind Kejriwal also sent chaadar.
A delegation of pilgrims from Pakistan, led by second Secretary of the Pakistan high commission Tariq Masroof, offered a chaadar on behalf of Pakistan Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif. The delegation later returned to Pakistan via a special train under tight security. Speaking to the media, one pilgrim expressed prayers for peace and prosperity.
"We all came to pray for peace and brotherhood. May Allah bless everyone, fill everyone’s bags, and bring peace to both India and Pakistan," he said.
Syed Sarwar Chishti, Secretary of the Dargah’s Anjuman Committee, dismissed concerns about the controversy’s impact, stating that pilgrim numbers only increased.
"This year, we have witnessed a larger turnout than before,” he said.
Traditionally, the crowds begin to thin after the Chhathi ritual, but this year, even after the Bade Kul ceremony, hotels remained fully booked, and pilgrims continued to arrive. The last time such a large crowd was witnessed was during the 786th Urs.
On September 25, 2024, Hindu Sena president Vishnu Gupta filed a petition claiming that the dargah site was originally a Sankatmochan Mahadev temple. The petition cited a 114-year-old book, Ajmer Historical and Descriptive, by retired judge Harbilas Sarda. A chapter of the book asserts that a Lord Shiva temple once stood at the dargah’s location.
