‘I would like to wish the people of India ‘as-salam walekum’:Zardari
Pakistan President was warmly received by Singh after
reaching the Prime Minister’s residence and both the leaders posed for
shutterbugs.
After landing in New Delhi at 12.10 pm at Palam Air Force Base
(technical area) along with his son Bilawal Bhutto, Zardari drove
straight to Singh’s official Race Course Road residence.
Zardari, who had expressed his desire to come on a private visit to
go to Ajmer to pay obeisance at the shrine of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti,
was invited by Singh to join him for lunch. The invitation was accepted
by Zardari.
“I have taken advantage of this visit to discuss with him all
bilateral issues and I am very satisfied with the outcome of this
visit,” the Prime Minister said while admitting that there were number
of issues between the two countries.
“We have a number of issues and we are willing to find practical
and pragmatic solutions to all those issues and that is the message
President Zardari and I would wish to convey,” Singh said.
“I would like to wish the people of India ‘as-salam walekum’ from
the President of Pakistan. I am grateful to the Prime Minister for
inviting me for lunch though I am on a private visit here but we have
had some fruitful bilateral talks together,” Zardari said.
The Pakistan President, who is on a day-long visit to India, said the two countries are neighbours.
“We would like to have better relations with India. We have spoken
on all topics that we could have spoken about and we are hoping to meet
on Pakistani soil very soon,” he said.
There was no structured agenda for the meeting between Singh and
Zardari. The two leaders, however, did not mention the specific issues
discussed during their meeting
The President landed at Ghugra helipad in Ajmer in a helicopter from
Jaipur where a special aircraft carrying him and his delegation brought
him from Delhi after a meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who
also hosted a lunch for him. The convoy then moved to the Dargah Sharif,
12.3 kms by road from the helipad.
Zardari performed ‘fateha’ (supplication) and went around the premises comprising mosques, graves of the Khwaja’s disciples, a pool and two big cauldrons used for cooking food during the annual Urs. Pervez Musharraf and Zia-ul-Haq were the previous Pakistani Presidents to offer obeisance at the revered shrine.
A one million USD donation(Rs five crore) for the welfare of the shrine was announced on behalf of Zardari by a member of his delegation, according to the Anjuman Committee’s vice president Syed Khalimuddin Chishti.
Clad in a blue shalwar kameez, 56-year-old Zardari, accompanied by his son Bilawal, Interior Minister Rehman Malik and members of his 44-member delegation, stayed inside the Sufi saint’s mausoleum for 20 minutes where he offered a 42-square metre long red ‘chadar’ and floral tributes. Bilawal offered a green chadar. Chadar is a ceremonial cloth inscribed with religious verses.
A chadar was also offered by Union Minister Pawan Bansal on behalf of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Bansal, the minister-in-waiting for Zardari’s visit, prayed for peace and harmony.Zardari said he felt “a great spiritual happiness” after coming to this holy place which was “beyond description.”
Zardari performed ‘fateha’ (supplication) and went around the premises comprising mosques, graves of the Khwaja’s disciples, a pool and two big cauldrons used for cooking food during the annual Urs. Pervez Musharraf and Zia-ul-Haq were the previous Pakistani Presidents to offer obeisance at the revered shrine.
A one million USD donation(Rs five crore) for the welfare of the shrine was announced on behalf of Zardari by a member of his delegation, according to the Anjuman Committee’s vice president Syed Khalimuddin Chishti.
Clad in a blue shalwar kameez, 56-year-old Zardari, accompanied by his son Bilawal, Interior Minister Rehman Malik and members of his 44-member delegation, stayed inside the Sufi saint’s mausoleum for 20 minutes where he offered a 42-square metre long red ‘chadar’ and floral tributes. Bilawal offered a green chadar. Chadar is a ceremonial cloth inscribed with religious verses.
A chadar was also offered by Union Minister Pawan Bansal on behalf of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Bansal, the minister-in-waiting for Zardari’s visit, prayed for peace and harmony.Zardari said he felt “a great spiritual happiness” after coming to this holy place which was “beyond description.”
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