No place for Musharraf plant?

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI, JULY 14. Unlike other prominent Heads of State, the Pakistan President, General Pervez Musharraf, did not plant a sapling at the samadhi complex during his visit to the Rajghat here today.

Though Rajghat Samadhi Committee officials maintained that the area earmarked for VIP plantations was full and the practice was stopped a few years ago, they were unable to explain how the Presidents of the U.S. and Russia planted `magnolia grandiflora' inside the sprawling campus in the recent past.

* * *

After receiving a gift pack from the Pakistan President at the Rajghat, the Union Urban Development Minister and Chairman of the Rajghat Samadhi Committee, Mr. Jagmohan, discovered some similarity between Gen. Musharraf and the former Pakistan President, Gen. Zia-ul-Haq.

A similar set of books was presented to Mr. Jagmohan by Gen. Zia during his visit to Islamabad in 1984. ``Though the books seem to be the latest edition, these are the same as were presented to me by Gen. Zia,'' Mr. Jagmohan told reporters. The coffee table books were titled ``Journey Through Pakistan'' and ``Wonders of Karakoram''.

* * *

Cartoonist Ranga was present with his sketch of Gen. Musharraf at the Rajghat. Just when the General was about to leave, Ranga requested him to put his signature on the cartoon.

The General obliged and even appreciated the sketch. After this, Ranga presented a copy of the sketch to the Pakistan President and told him that he had been doing this for several years now.

* * *

Having come to know that music was very dear to Gen. Musharraf, the samadhi committee officials deviated from convention and included a set of audio cassettes in their gift pack.

The carefully selected set included cassettes of Begum Akhtar, Ustad Abdul Karim Khan Sahib, Mallikarjun Mansoor, Bhim Sen Joshi, Bismillah Khan, Hari Prasad Chaurasia, Shiv Shankar Sharma, Ustad Vilayat Ali Khan, Ustad Ali Akbar Khan, and Kabir Vani by Pandit Hari Om Sharma which included the song ``Ram Rahim Ek Hain''. For a change, the officials also played this song of Kabir besides ``Ram Dhun'', the favourite bhajan of Mahatma Gandhi.

* * *

The eminent Gandhian, Ms. Nirmala Deshpande, today met Gen. Musharraf for the third time in recent past. She had met him twice at his official residence in Rawalpindi.

Small wonder then that when the General came out of his vehicle at the entrance of the Rajghat, he told Ms. Deshpande: ``I am glad to see you here.'' Then the General told those standing there: ``She has visited my house in Rawalpindi twice.'' While accompanying him on his way to the samadhi, Ms. Deshpane told him that he was the first Pakistani Head of State to pay homage to the Mahatma at the Rajghat. To this, the General smiled.

* * *

Just an hour before the Pakistan President was to visit his birthplace at Naherwali Haveli, the police control room received a call that a bomb had been planted at Darya Ganj. A bomb detection and disposal squad and a dog squad were pressed into service and the area was combed. However, no bomb was found on the hospital premises. Later the call was declared a hoax. Police said they were trying to trace the caller.

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