Following is translation of the rejoinder sent by Ambassador of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques to India Mr. Saleh Mohd. Al-Ghamdi to the Editor of Urdu Weekly “Nai Dunya”, New Delhi which appeared in the Weekly’s issue dated 16^th April 2007 :

Dear Sir,

            This refers to the report published in Nai Dunya’s issue dated 26^th March 2007 under the title “Makkah under the grip of land mafia”. I was shocked by the uncivilized attacks on Saudi Arabia’s leadership and people and the false accusations and fabrications contained in the report, especially because “Nai Dunya” is edited and supervised by a person holding a responsible position who was expected to know the facts better than others and was supposed to abide by the truth, honesty and impartiality and appreciate the great efforts and giant projects being carried out by the Government of Saudi Arabia in the holy places and the services and facilities provided to Haj and Umra pilgrims, for which we seek reward only from Allah.

            The report smells of hatred and hostility which has no justification at a time when the historical and cordial relations between the friendly  people and governments of Saudi Arabia and India are rapidly growing in various fields and the pace of this growth has intensified since the visit of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud to India in January 2006.

            I know that your paper has a very limited readership but we respect and attach equal importance to that small number of readers and we do not want that wrong and misleading information is given to them through your paper.

            The Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia takes pride in having been chosen by Allah for the service of the Two Holy Mosques and does not spare any effort in serving and taking care of the holy places in Makkah and Madina, and the whole Islamic world acknowledges these efforts”.