New Delhi: For the first time since succeeding his father as the 50th Imam of the Shia Ismaili community, Prince Rahim Aga Khan V has arrived in Delhi.
During his week-long visit from 9 to 15 September, spiritual leader Prince Rahim Aga Khan will meet President Droupadi Murmu, Vice-President CP Radhakrishnan and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
He will also hold meetings with Union Home Minister Amit Shah and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.
“He became the Imam of Shia Ismaili Muslims after his father died last year. This is his first visit to India in that capacity. He is here to meet the community and oversee the large presence of ongoing projects across India,” said an Aga Khan official.
The official said Prince Rahim last visited India in July 2024 to inaugurate the Humayun’s Tomb Museum, but this is his first visit to the country as Imam.
Prince Rahim assumed the position in February 2025 following the death of his father, Prince Karim Al-Hussaini Aga Khan IV.
The global Ismaili population is estimated at 12-15 million across more than 35 countries.
On Thursday, he will meet Modi, Shah and Jaishankar.
“The Vice-President is throwing a banquet for him. Then he will have some internal meetings, as there are seven to eight entities of the Aga Khan network in India. Then he travels to Ahmedabad, Mumbai and Hyderabad,” said an official.
Aga Khan works
Prince Rahim is also the chair of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN).
He was educated at Phillips Academy Andover in Massachusetts and graduated from Brown University in 1995 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in comparative literature.
“He has been particularly concerned with AKDN’s drive to protect the environment and mitigate the effects of climate change. He has also given sustained attention to the work of AKDN and the Ismaili community institutions in addressing the needs of those living in the greatest poverty and supporting the improvement of their livelihoods through education, training and enterprise,” according to the AKDN.
AKDN has worked in India since 1905, when an Aga Khan school was established in Gujarat. It runs a range of programmes aimed at improving the quality of life of disadvantaged communities.
The Aga Khan Development Network works in the fields of agriculture and food security, education, health, habitat, civil society and cultural development.
In Delhi, the Aga Khan Trust for Culture led the conservation of Humayun’s Tomb and surrounding Mughal monuments. Today, more than 2 million people visit Humayun’s Tomb every year.
In Hyderabad, it led the conservation of the Qutb Shahi Royal Tombs.
(Edited by Prashant Dixit)