Standoff at Bhitai's shrine: Faqirs approach SHC against custodian

Sajjada nashin removes chief khalifa in unprecedented move, bans faqirs from singing at shrine

HYDERABAD: The standoff between the sajjada nashin of the shrine of legendary Sufi poet Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai and the faqirs who are the heirs of Bhitai's music and singing traditions has reached the courts.

The faqirs approached the Sindh High Court against Syed Waqar Hussain Shah — the 12th custodian of the shrine since Bhitai's death in 1752 — after days of protests and clashes that led to police intervention in Bhit Shah.

At the heart of the issue lies the removal of Faqir Ali Dino Tamrani, the chief khalifa, and his replacement by a Syed in an unprecedented show of authority by a sajjada nashin. The new khalifa will gain control of Bhitai's four-acre haveli near the shrine and, reportedly, a 100 acre farm.

"Bhitai himself handed over this haveli to our ancestor faqirs in his lifetime," contended Tamrani in his petition, filed through advocate Arshad Pathan. "We have been looking after it for centuries, organising raag, rung and langar every day." His stance has been echoed by his relatives and supporters in their protests.

According to Tamrani, never have any of the custodians interfered in the appointment or even nomination of a khalifa in the last two and a half centuries. In the past, each deceased khalifa has been succeeded by a relative.

The faqirs also claim that they are being denied musical sessions at the shrine and forced to leave the town with their families.

The faqirs, representing the musical and singing genius of Bhitai, perform at the shrine on a daily basis. In a choir of six to seven musicians, they recite his poetry, called waee, and play the five-stringed dambur, modified by the poet.

"We acquired these skills from our fathers and forefathers," explained Tamrani at a protest demonstration in Hyderabad over a week ago. "We have been devotedly preserving this unique form of singing and music for centuries because, despite all our hardships, there was no intervention that could have affected our art."

His family, along with two others, have been expelled from the haveli. The police took control of the premises after a clash between the faqirs and Waqar's supporters 10 days ago.

During the hearing on Friday, Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar observed that the custodian is technically the head of the faqirs. Tamrani's counsel replied, however, that although he was in charge, he was going against the traditions set by Bhitai himself.

The court ordered the chief administrator of the provincial Auqaf department to submit his report about the matter on May 7. The provincial chief secretary, Auqaf minister and secretary, Matiari deputy commissioner and SSP, Waqar and 11 others from Bhit Shah have been named as respondents in the case.

Meanwhile, Waqar justified the removal of the faqirs. "If Pir Pagara can remove his four khalifas then why can't I?" he asked while talking to the media. "I removed Tamrani because he did not participate in the shrine's rituals and kept repeating mistakes."

The custodian further alleged that Tamrani and his supporters attacked him and his followers. "We have banned him from singing at the shrine or entering the haveli," he confirmed.

Waqar was sworn in on January 1 after the death of his father, Syed Nisar Hussain Shah, on December 29, 2014. He heads the Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai Foundation, an NGO, and also formed a political party — the All Pakistan Latifi Jamaat — on April 21, at Bhitai's birth anniversary commemoration in Bhit Shah.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 2^nd, 2015.