Nawaz Sharif gets Shahi Imam's invite, not Modi

Shahi Imam of Delhi’s Jama Masjid, Syed Ahmed Bukhari, on Thursday triggered a controversy by inviting Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif as well as other political leaders to the anointment ceremony of his son on November 22 but not Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Nineteen-year-old Shaban, who is pursuing a Bachelors in social work at a private university, will be anointed as the Naib Shahi Imam (Vice-Imam) at a ceremony in the historic Jama Masjid. Religious leaders from across the world are expected to attend.

“I have invited several Indian and foreign political leaders to attend the anointment ceremony of my son. Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has also been invited, but I have not sent an invitation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi as Muslims have not forgiven him for the Gujarat riots of 2002,” Bukhari said.

Among those invited by him are Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP) leaders Rajnath Singh, Harsh Vardhan, Syed Shahnawaz Hussain and Vijay Goel, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav, Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.

Justifying the decision of not inviting Modi, Bukhari said: “It is not a personal fight. He does not like us and we do not like him. Modi never tried to reach out to the Muslims and kept the Muslims at a distance.”

Reacting sharply to the  Imam’s statement, the BJP said it was unfortunate.

“Indian Muslims are born in India and they love India and they would never ever think of Pakistan. What message does the Shahi Imam want to send out?” BJP national spokesperson Nalin Kohli said.

Shaban was picked for the influential post due to his “strong inclination” towards humanities besides his religious capabilities, said Bukhari, who has held the prestigious post since 2000. Shaban will be groomed under his father, who will remain the Shahi Imam for his life. Shaban will then take over the mantle from his father as 14th Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid, the largest mosque in the country.