The police started the drive in coordination with the Ajmer Dargah committee (File Photo)

The police have started conducting searches at the Ajmer Dargah every night to clear the premises of people staying in an unauthorised manner, officials said on Wednesday.

The first such search and checking drive was initiated on Monday night when more than 100 people, who were staying inside the Dargah premises, were moved out.

The police started the drive in coordination with the Dargah committee and Anjuman (committee of Khadims) after it found that people arrived in the guise of pilgrims and started staying there permanently.

Several pickpockets were also detained during the drive, which took place from 1 am to 3 am.

"The Dargah is a big premise where many people come as pilgrims but do not return and start living there. Most of them fail to establish their identity and they are unknown to the Dargah committee. The presence of such people poses a threat to the security. Therefore the decision was taken to conduct search and checking every night," Ajmer SP K Rastradeep told PTI.

He said the decision was taken during a meeting attended by the representatives of the Dargah committee and the committee of Khadims.

The SP said such people start begging and troubling pilgrims and become a security challenge.

"During the last two days, we picked many pickpockets and others from the Dargah who were staying inside the premises for no reason. We asked them to stay at some ''rain basera'' or shelter, inn or hotel and not inside the Dargah," he said.

The Dargarh of Sufi saint Moinuddin Chishti remains crowded as thousands of pilgrims and foreign tourists visit it daily.

"It is a good initiative because many people start living throughout the day which causes concern," Wahid Hussain Chisty, secretary of the Anjuman committee said.

In October 2007, a blast took place at the Dargarh which claimed two lives and injured 17 people.

Many illegal Bangladeshi nationals have also been caught near the Dargah and other areas of the city in the past and the exercise is aimed at enhancing the security, officials added.