The man who made ghazals a feature of Indian middle class drawing rooms passed away on October 10, 2011. His absence has created a vacuum in the world of ghazals, leaving lovers of this genre of music in a state of despair.

His diehard fans have kept him alive in their hearts; however some people with strong business intents have been wrongly using his name. Singh’s wife Chitra is peeved with the way some people have been making money in the name of paying a tribute.

Talking about how people have made commercial use of his name, Chitra said to a tabloid, “Ever since he passed away thousands of people are making money in the name of tributes to Jagjit Singh. Not a single one of them has approached me or bothered to inform me about the events.”

Since Singh’s death, there has been no official tribute. The first and the only official is being organised with his wife’s consent on February 8, 2012, which happens to be his date of birth.

Veteran ghazal singer Ghulam Ali from Pakistan will feature in the tribute programme.

Chitra spoke about the special programme in memory of Jagjit Singh. She said, “Ghulam Ali saab is specially flying down from Pakistan for this evening. I am happy and grateful that at least someone has come forward to put this together and bothered to include me in the arrangements. We all know he deserves this and more.”