Indian Supreme Court Rejects Plea to Halt Modi’s Chadar Offering at Ajmer Sharif Dargah

India: In a significant development amid ongoing legal disputes over the Ajmer Sharif Dargah, the Supreme Court on Sunday refused to urgently list or entertain a plea seeking to restrain the Prime Minister’s Office from offering a ceremonial ‘chadar’ at the shrine during the 814th annual Urs of Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti.

A vacation bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant declined an oral mention by advocate Barun Kumar Sinha, representing Hindu Sena president Vishnu Gupta, who argued that the chadar offering on behalf of Prime Minister Narendra Modi would prejudice a pending civil suit in an Ajmer court. The suit claims the dargah was constructed over a pre-existing Shiva temple, ‘Bhagwan Shri Sankatmochan Mahadev Virajman Temple’, and seeks an Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) probe.

The bench, also comprising Justice Joymalya Bagchi, turned down the request for immediate listing, stating no urgent intervention was warranted.

Despite the legal challenge, the tradition will proceed as planned. Union Minister for Minority Affairs Kiren Rijiju is scheduled to offer the velvet chadar on behalf of PM Modi at the dargah today. Rijiju is expected to arrive in Ajmer, perform ziyarat (visitation), lay the chadar on the saint’s tomb, read out the Prime Minister’s message, and participate in traditional rituals.

PM Modi handed over the chadar to Rijiju in a brief ceremony in New Delhi earlier. The gesture underscores India’s longstanding practice of interfaith harmony, followed by prime ministers across parties to honor the Sufi saint known as ‘Garib Nawaz’ (benefactor of the poor).

The underlying dispute traces back to a 2024 civil suit filed by Hindu Sena in Ajmer, which prompted notices to the Dargah Committee, ASI, and Ministry of Minority Affairs. Similar attempts to block chadar offerings have surfaced in previous years but have not disrupted the annual tradition.

The Urs festivities, marking the saint’s death anniversary, commenced with flag hoisting on December 17 and continue until December 30, drawing millions of devotees from across faiths.