M A I N   N E W S

Musharraf prays for peace

Ajmer, April 16
Fulfilling his long-cherished desire, Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf today paid obeisance at the Dargah of famous Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti here and prayed for improvement in Indo-Pak relations and peace between the two countries.

Kicking off his three-day visit to India, Musharraf, who could not visit the Dargah in 2001 following the breakdown of the Agra summit, along with his wife Sehba and other members of the delegation spent nearly 25 minutes at the sanctum sanctorum of the Dargah.

“I have brought a message of peace and friendship from Pakistan,” the 61-year-old President, clad in white kurta and salwar with a red turban tied on his head, said emerging from the prayers.

“It was a moment of honour for me and my wife and other members of the delegation to pay our homage at the Dargah for the first time.

“I prayed for peace and prosperity of our peoples, for resolution of differences and improvement in relations between the two countries,” he told a large posse of media personnel who jostled to cover the event.

“There can be no progress without peace,” he said, adding “I hope my prayers are answered.”

Pakistan Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri and Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed were among those who accompanied the President at the Dargah.

The VVIP-couple offered a special embroidered green chaddar at the Dargah, which was virtually turned into a fortress with a three-tier security cordon in place.

The President, his wife and the accompanying delegation flew in here from Jaipur in three helicopters and drove straight to the Dargah where they were welcomed by khadims — believed to be descendants of the 13th century saint. They offered a 40-metre chaddar at the Mazaar.

Twenty nine-year-old Khadim Syed Mohammed Atiq Chisti led Musharraf in paying obeisance at the Dargah while his grandfather Syed Nazeefa Hussain performed the traditional dastarbandi (tying of the turban).

Anjuman committee presented the President with two green chaddars for offering them at two dargahs in Lahore. — PTI