Ubaidullah Shariff

Ubaidullah Shariff, editor of Pasban daily from Bangalore was unanimously elected the president of the Dargah Committee at Ajmer which looks after the management of the mausoleum of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishty. Abdul Wadood Faqih was elected vice president of the committee. Other members include Advocate Asrar Ahmed Khan from Rajasthan, Shah Ammar Ahmed Naiyer Miyan (sajjada of Rudauli Sharif in UP), Ziauddin from Gujarat, Sheikh Aleem from Madhya Pradesh, Chaudhury Wahhaj Akhtar from Amethi, Javed Majid Parekh from Maharashtra. The election was held on June 12 at the Islamic Culture Centre, New Delhi. The committee works under the aegis of the Ministry of Minority Affairs currently headed by Minister K. Rahman Khan. The committee is constituted under the Dargah Ajmer Shariff Act 1955 of Parliament and looks after the sanitation, power and water supply, accommodation of visitors and devotees and arrangements of annual urs. Of the nine members, eight were elected on June 12. One seat is still vacant. The Dargah of 12th century saint Khawja Moinuddin Chishty draws lakhs of pilgrims from the entire subcontinent.