Ajeetwal is a small town near Ludhiana. Residents of this town in rural Punjab have not heard
the Azan for years. The universal Muslim call for prayer still surprises many.
Our Hindu Sikh brothers have cooperated a lot. We have even got the Mali Taurpurbhi
Cooperation here and their youth have supported us a lot.
Muslims are a small minority in Punjab. There are very few mosques in this North Indian
state which has a large Sikh population. Punjabis are mostly skilled farmers and labourers
and are also known for their folk music Bhangra.
This mosque in Punjab is around 600 years old. There were no permanent Muslim families
left in the village to rebuild or revive it.
During the partition of India and Pakistan in 1947, Muslims fled Punjab to live in Pakistan.
This mosque in rural Punjab was vandalised, it was unoccupied and converted into a home.
Recently, some Sikhs decided to clear it up and restore its sanctity.
There was a Friday prayers here again, just like in any other mosque.
In another village called Mandi Gobindkar, the locals built another mosque 20 years ago.
A Sikh community donated the land and there are now about 100 Muslim families living in
this area. Hassan Muhammad has overseen the construction of several mosques like these.
He has often invited Sikhs to lay the foundation of these mosques. He believes these communities
are a fine lesson on social tolerance and religious harmony for the rest of the world.
Dr. Pramod Kumar is the director of the Institute for Development and Communication in Chandigarh.
He feels there is an attempt to build a secular Punjab, a Punjab that belongs to all faiths.
Religious intolerance all over the world has shown that it serves no purpose. The people
of Punjab have learnt a lesson from religious violence of the 1970s. We have to build a
collective consciousness which indicates a need to create a secular Punjabi identity.
The building of these mosques is a sign of this awareness. Secularism is a dominant trend
in the culture and politics of Punjab.
Sources say Sikhs and Hindus have helped build and renovate up to 200 mosques in the last
10 years in the Punjab region.
These communities believe mosques are the retainers of divine grace and blessings and
they are glad they can help rebuild and revive them for their Muslim brothers.
I have been the boss here for over 20 years and have worked as part of opposite parties
to help build those mosques, so that people can find their own solution and help them
more.
Plant itοι and pray and help those who needm it.
In runs.
We recited there.
We are though
How do you feel about this?
I feel that we have invited them with their Guru.
Amrit Rambu, Press TV, Punjab.
Amrit Rambu, Press TV, Punjab.
