The Uttar Pradesh government on Wednesday didn’t allow the annual congregation at the dargah of Hazrat Saiyyad Salar Sahu Ghazi in Satrikha village of Barabanki district.
Only a few days ago, the government had denied permission to a similar mela at the grave of Salar Masud Ghazi, son of Sahu Ghazi, in Bahraich.
Both decisions followed claims by several Hindutva organisations that they would protest the two melas.
Mohammad Wakaullah, president of Bahraich’s Dargah Committee, said the melas were 1,000-year-old and the government should have allowed the tradition to continue.
Known in local folklore for his charity, Sahu Ghazi, a commander of Mahmud of Ghazni, had spent his last years at Satrikha village and was buried there after his death.
Organised by the Barabanki Dargah Committee, the mela was supposed to be held from May 14 to 18.
Piyush Mishra, spokesperson for the Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party, an ally of the ruling BJP, said: “There is no space for invaders here. We are happy that the government has taken a decision on our demands.”
Earlier, the government had denied permission for the annual mela organised in Bahraich on the death anniversary of Salar Masud Ghazi, the son of Sahu Ghazi. This mela was supposed to be held for a month from Thursday.
Amar Chaurasiya, in-charge of Satrikha police station, said: “ During an inquiry, I found that a large stretch of land where the mela was supposed to be held was encroached by anti-social elements. While we sort out the problem, the mela was cancelled over fear of a law-and-order crisis.”