India denies Pak Sufi singers visa to perform in Lucknow

LUCKNOW: In a phenomenon that has started to repeat in a pattern, well-known Sufi singers from Pakistan- the Hussaini brothers, descendants of one of the earliest disciples of Amir Khusro, were refused permission to perform in Lucknow.

Their visas were reportedly “kept in abeyance” by the government of India. The ministry of home affairs- the central agency for clearing visas, delayed the process, forcing organisers to cancel the much anticipated show. In Dec 2014, a performance by Sachal Jazz Ensemble also from Pakistan had to be called off at the last minute at the National Centre for Performing Arts (NCPA) in Mumbai for similar reasons. This has prompted criticism that deliberate attempts are afoot to artificially divide cultural exchanges between the people of India and Pakistan. 

Karachi-based qawwals- Fariduddin Ayaz, Abu Muhammed and group were unable to travel to India to perform in Lucknow on Monday after their visas were not cleared in time by Indian authorities. They were expected to perform as part of an ongoing five-day cultural festival organised by Sanatkada and supported by the Sadbhavana Trust.

Products of the ‘Qawwal bachchon ka gharana’, they are also flag-bearers of the Dilli Gharana and perform various genres of classical music like Dhrupad, Khayal, Tarana, Thumri and Dadra. In their mission to promote India-Pakistan brotherhood, Ayaz and Muhammed have also performed during Aman Ki Asha- a campaign jointly started by two leading media houses The Jang Group in Pakistan and The Times of India in India. The campaign for mutual peace and development of diplomatic and cultural relations between the two nations started on 1 January 2010.

Interestingly, Lucknow, where Monday’s performance was scheduled is the parliamentary constituency of Union minister for home affairs, Rajnath Singh. And it turns out that the hurdles in clearing the travel documents of the Pakistani singers were created by the ministry of home affairs itself which happens to be the central agency for clearing visas. 

While Rajnath Singh remained unavailable for comment on phone or through email, visa officer at the Indian High Commission in Islamabad, Janesh said, “Visas are granted on the basis of clearances for which the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is Central agency. We tried to do what we could. The musicians may be granted visa tomorrow.” With their scheduled programme cancelled, however, issuing a visa may now be entirely futile. However, Janesh maintained there were “set procedures that had to be followed.”

When the visas weren’t cleared, the scheduled programme had to be cancelled at the last minute, leaving organisers and many music aficionados who flew in especially to hear the troupe perform, high and dry. Festival organiser Madhavi Kuckreja was quoted as saying that she was “deeply disappointed”. “We altered their itinerary twice in the hope that the Hussaini brothers will travel. But, we were told there is no clear word on whether their visas have been approved or rejected,” Kuckreja said.

Abu Mohammed Hussaini said, “We moved the application for visas some months ago. On Monday last week, we were called for a visa interview in Islamabad and told, verbally, that visa had been granted. Later, we received communication that it would be processed in a day or two. Since then, we have been following up with the embassy every day, but no clearance has been given, or reason cited for delay. Unofficially, we were also told that the Ministry of Home Affairs in India has not issued the necessary clearances for issuing visas.”

This is not the first time the Hussain brothers and other Pakistani music groups have been denied permission to perform in India. In December, the Hussaini brothers could not perform at the Delhi Press Club.

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