September 10, 2003	Wednesday	Rajab 12, 1424

KARACHI, Sept 9: Hardly 20 kms from the Pakistan border and almost equally close to the East Punjab border are as many as 10 dargahs in small hamlets, where there are no longer any Muslims.

Reporting from Hinumualkot, the village closest to the border, the Indian Express says every second month there is a mela, where devotees converge at these shrines. The graves, looked after by the Hindus since the departure of Muslims in 1947, attract people from far and wide.

In the last week of August, at Pir Baba Fazal’s mazar in Keri village, many people participated in the mela.

Currently, the only Muslim in the area is Ismail Khan, the SHO of the area, who says, “the way the people have maintained and looked after these dargahs is really amazing. Not only do they pray here but they also keep it clean and there is no encroachment on the land around the dargahs.”

Until recently, the Indian Express report says, the mazars were visited by Pakistanis whose ancestors had built the shrines, but after the worsening of relations, no Pakistani devotees have been seen.