KARACHI: Two police mobile vans now guard the main entrance to the shrine of Hazrat Abdullah Shah Ghazi as the security has been tightened since the terrorist attack at the shrine of Sufi saint Lal Shahbaz Qalandar in Sehwan on Feb 16.

Police officers at the shrine in Clifton explained that they received orders from the office of the inspector general of police who had recently visited it. Previously security had been beefed up after twin bomb attacks at the Ghazi shrine in October 2010.

According to an estimate, there are 160 shrines across Karachi and around 100 of these shrines, situated around the shores as well as areas lining the outskirts of the metropolis, are most visited by the devotees from Sindh and southern Punjab.

Although historians and researchers count many of these to be “linked to the city’s past”, there is an increasing security threat faced by many of these shrines. Some of the threat is due to the increasing encroachment surrounding the shrines, as pointed out by an activist Abdul Ghani who works to protect heritage sites in Karachi’s district west. He spoke about the shrine of Sakhi Sultan, also known as Baba or Peer Mangho, in Manghopir, which is surrounded by marble shops and tile makers. According to him, “areas at the back of the shrine still harbour support for the Taliban who were said to be booted out during the Rangers-led operation in Karachi”. This led to the fear among residents that the shrine and groups of gypsies living next to it needed to be alert, he said.

Writer Gul Hassan Kalmati said that when it was about protection, the shrine of Hazrat Abdullah Shah Ghazi was among the first ones to receive it. “Many other shrines are left out as a result though they are just as vulnerable to these threats,” he added.

Mr Kalmati said most of the shrines, such as Hazrat Syed Kutub Alam Shah Bukhari’s shrine in Eidgah, Hazrat Ghayab Shah Bukhari’s shrine in Keamari, among others, were filled on Thursdays or around particular month of the year as part of yearly festivities. The shrine of Hazrat Abdullah Shah Ghazi, however, “is filled round the year by both Hindu and Muslim devotees,” he added.

According to him, as many of the shrines are situated near the shore, these were and still are frequented by fishermen. Before embarking on a 15- to 20-day journey, many fishermen used to stop at the nearest shrine, pray, and then leave. The same routine was repeated on their return from the sea, he said.

Shrines also serve as a congregating junction for families and friends, said Mr Kalmati. It was explained best through the stalls surrounding most shrines of toys, bangles, apart from the chadors inscribed with religious text, flower petals and incense sticks.

Moving away from the “simpler times” as Mr Kalmati referred to it, the addition of caretakers to the shrines increased the tales or legends about each one of the saints it belonged to. These legends about the ‘karamaat’ of a saint were, and still are, orally circulated among the devotees, he added.

For instance, he said, the shrine of Hazrat Yusuf Shah, brother of Abdullah Shah Ghazi, in Manora, was said to be the saviour of the sea and to have protected the sea during the Indo-Pak war of 1965.

In his article Another Time, Another Place, published in Herald, architect Arif Hasan wrote: “We are told by British visitors later that no vessel left or entered the harbour without depositing some offering at the shrine.” At the same time, Hasan stated that another British Marine, John Porter, visited Karachi in 1774 and mentioned the shrine as the “white tomb”.

Jillani Baba’s shrine in Gadap is known to organise literary events which are attended by people from Karachi and other cities every year. Mr Kalmati added that the dargah was working well without a caretaker because of a 20-member committee helping with the maintenance of the shrine. “Not having a caretaker helps, as then, the responsibility is either with the government or a committee of like-minded people who are invested in maintaining the shrine and not to use it as a way of earning money,” said Mr Kalmati. As an afterthought, he added that the money earned could be used to upgrade security at the shrines as well. “Protecting these shrines should be a priority as they are part of our city’s history and, whether we agree or not, they provide momentary relief to those who believe,” he added.

Published in Dawn, March 6th, 2017