Having visited Taj Mahal on Saturday, French President Nicholas Sarkozy and his wife Carla Bruni decided to skip their scheduled re-engagement at the “monument of love” on Sunday morning and instead decided to head straight for the Sufi shrine of Sheikh Saleem Chishti at Fatehpuri Sikri, an hour’s drive from here, to make a wish. Going by what Sajjad-e-Nasheen Peerzada Raees Miyan, a direct descendant of the Sufi saint and the man who took the French first couple around the spiritual abode had to say, Ms Bruni wanted him to “pray for a son” for them.
Entering from the Badshahi Gate, the Sarkozys went to the dargah built by Mughal Emperor Akbar for Sheikh Saleem Chishti, whose blessings had got him his son Jehangir. Ms Bruni was carrying a pink stole that covered her head, while her husband, dressed in a blue suit, was given a cap.
“I told them there is a tradition to make a wish and tie a thread (commonly known as kalawa) at the dargah. Ms Bruni immediately asked for a thread, which was given to her. She then asked me to bless it before tying it in the window grill of the dargah,” said Sajjad-i-Nahseen, who is a 16th generation descendant of the Sufi saint. The entourage moved towards the Buland Darwaza and waved to the crowd watching them from the rooftops of nearby houses.
“On their way back, when I was seeing them off at the Badshahi Gate, Ms Bruni said: ‘Pray for me. I want a son’,” said Raees Miyan, who is always in traditional attire while playing host to heads of state and other VIP visitors. Saying that Mr Sarkozy was the first French head of state to visit the monument and shrine, the Sajjad-i-Nasheen insisted that the visit was primarily in order to make a wish. He even hinted that it was the personal insistence of the couple that had made the visit to the shrine possible at all, indicating that security personnel had been apprehensive about their safety.
Earlier on Sunday morning, the Sarkozys had lingered longer than expected at their suite at the Oberois’ ultra-luxurious Amarvilas in Agra, soaking in the magnificent views of the Taj Mahal — which is clearly visible from every room in the hotel — and dropped earlier plans to visit the monument for a second time. The local police and administration, which had restricted visitors at the Taj in anticipation of the 10 am-noon presidential visit, lifted the cordons at around 10.40 am and allowed regular tourists in.
The French President’s entourage reached Fatehpur Sikri at around 3.20 pm — 20 minutes ahead of schedule — and left after spending an hour there. Inside the monument, Mr Sarkozy and his wife took a look at the Jodha Bai complex, Anup Ka Talao (where Tansen used to sing on a pedestal amid water), Diwan-i-Khas (where the navratnas of Akbar used to meet) and a few other places.
During their visit to the Taj Mahal on Saturday evening, President Sarkozy wrote in the visitors’ book: “It represents the civilisation of the East. Unforgettable.” He wrote in French, following which Ms Bruni put her signature. “At Fatehpur Sikri, the French President asked his wife to write (in the visitors’ book) and he signed it. “She wrote ‘Thank you so much for a wonderful visit’ in English, and her husband signed it,” said ASI superintending archaeologist I.D. Dwivedi, who led the team which provided a guided tour of the monument.
Officials who have closely followed the visit said the French first couple appeared to be in the mood to enjoy some private moments when they went to Taj at an unscheduled time. “On Saturday, the couple saw references to (Mr Sarkozy’s) earlier Taj visit in 2008, where he had said he would come to this place along with his wife... They always wanted to see it, but that seemed to have triggered the wish to see it well before the scheduled time,” said Mr Dwivedi.
The officials added that on Saturday Mr Sarkozy seemed to be in a mood to be left alone with his wife as he led her to various points of the magnificent monument, explaining to her the finer aspects of the architecture. On Sunday, though, when accompanied by their entire delegation, the first couple still looked relaxed and appeared to enjoy every moment of their visit to Fatehpur Sikri.