By TCN Special Correspondent,
Lucknow: Dewa Shareef, the mausoleum of famous Sufi Saint Haji Waris Ali Shah imparts message of love and brotherhood for whole humanity but its own mausoleum committee is heading for a showdown. Already mudslinging has begun indicating that peace does not prevail in Dewa Shareef.
Dewa Shareef, a small town under Barabanki district, is nearly 30 kms from state capital Lucknow.
The Mazar of Haji Waris Ali Shah is managed by a Mausoleum Trust. It has 14 members. Another four members are nominees from administration and district board. Another four members are nominated by the sub-committee of Dargah Warsi Association.
The Mausoleum Trust is responsible for the offerings on the Mazar. Insiders claim that the volume of offerings is very high and thus regular infighting occurs with each group trying to establish its supremacy.
The trust committee is selected for five years and its present tenure is expiring on July 21. As per rules the new committee should be elected at least three months before the expiry of the term.
Now some members have opened the front against the secretary of the trust Ghulam Waris Khan. They claim that Khan runs the committee as per his whims and fancies. “It is learnt that he called a meeting on June 21st. To my knowledge no such meeting took place. The members come from far flung areas and should be informed beforehand,” said member Ataur Rehman Kidwai. Kidwai is close relative of former union minister and Congress leader Mohsina Kidwai. Another member Ata-e-Waris stated that due to the dictatorship of Ghulam Waris Khan the existence of the Mausoleum Trust is under threat. Incidentally, Ata-e-Waris’s son-in-law Zafar Ahmed Farooqui is Chairman of UP Central Waqf Board at Lucknow.
When contacted, the manager of the Mazar Saad Mehmood Warsi stated that the tenure is expiring on July 21 and the process for selecting new committee is underway. For further information he asked to contact the Trust Secretary, Ghulam Waris Khan who lives in
Lucknow. Repeated calls were made to his mobile phone but there was no response.