India
Aga Khan to visit India from tomorrow
New Delhi | Sunday, May 11 2008 IST
Aga Khan, the spiritual leader of 20 million Ismaili Muslims around the world, will arrive here tomorrow on a week-long visit to commemorate his 50th year as the 49th Imam of the Shia Ismaili Muslims. During his stay in Delhi tomorrow and on May 13, he will meet President Pratibha Patil, Vice President Hamid Ansari, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other dignitaries. He will also visit Maharashtra, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh. The Aga Khan last visited India in September 2006, during which he laid the foundation stone of the Aga Khan Academy at Hyderabad. After his arrival here at 0800 hrs tomorrow, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee will call on him at 1045 hrs. He will later meet Vice President Hamid Ansari at 1130 hrs. The 71-year-old spiritual leader will have a meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at 1700 hrs after which he will call on UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi. The next day, May 13, he will call on President Pratibha Patil. Leader of Opposition L K Advani will also call on him in the evening. He will leave for Hyderabad on Wednesday from where he will go to Mumbai the next day. He will also visit Ahmedabad and return to Mumbai. From Mumbai the Aga Khan will leave for Dhaka on May 19. The Aga Khan, who normally wears a suit and a tie and lives in Paris, has set up the 'Aga Khan Foundation' which is involved in many philanthropic activities. It has established educational institutions including universities in countries like the UK, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Syria and Egypt. The Forbes Magazine has listed the Aga Khan as the 10th richest royal in the world, having a wealth of one billion dollars. The Aga Khan, whose original name is Prince Karim al-Husseini, was given the title by his grandfather when he was just 20 year-old and studying at Harvard. His father, Prince Aly Khan, was not bestowed the title because he had married an American actress. -- (UNI) -- 11DI26.xml
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