No Talk Of Temple's Presence In 800-Year History Of Ajmer Dargah: Diwan Chishti

Successor Diwan Syed Nasiruddin Chishti said the baseless claim about the presence of a Shiva temple in the Dargah complex was made for cheap popularity.

Ajmer: After the petition claiming the existence of a Shiva temple in Ajmer Dargah of Rajasthan was accepted by the court, the successor of the Dargah Diwan, Syed Nasiruddin Chishti issued a statement saying the dargah has been there for more than 800 years and there was never been any talk of a temple. This is a conspiracy to gain cheap popularity and the answer to the case will be given in the court.

Chishti, the successor of the Diwan in Ajmer Khwaja Garib Nawaz's Dargah, said the process has its origin in 1950 when a panel was set up under the chairmanship of Ghulam Hasan, judge of Allahabad High Court, which submitted its report to the parliament. The report has the entire history of the Dargah like which building was constructed, and when and who built it. But it never mentioned the presence of any temple in the Dargah complex for the last 800 years. Some people are doing such things to gain popularity which is not good for the country and society. "Till when will we remain embroiled in the temple-mosque dispute in the country?" he asked.

Chisti said this practice was wrong and requested the central government to formulate legislation, keeping aside the disputes before 1947.

"Claims are being made about the presence of temples in mosques and dargahs. This increases bitterness and distrust towards each other, harming the social fabric. We all should stand together against such people. Everyone has the right to approach the court for justice. It is a fight of law and if we have to take legal advice from lawyers and present our side in this matter, then we will do so," he said.

He added that the book being mentioned in the petition was written in 1910 by Harvilas Sharda, a famous personality of his time. If Sharda has mentioned the temple inside the dargah, then it is not authentic.

Khwaja Garib Nawaz died in 1236 and many Hindu royals presented many gifts to the Daragh after his demise. The silver Kathghara was offered by the Maharaj of Jaipur, which weighs 42,961 tolas.

Sharda's book belongs to 1910, whereas the history of Nawaz is more than 800 years old. During this time, there was no mention anywhere in history that there was a Hindu temple in the Dargah. All these claims are baseless. The central government had already got every building of the dargah enquired in 1950.