India: Muslims and Sikhs on Saturday set an example of communal harmony in Uttarakhand’s Joshimath, 300 kilometres from here, when the local gurudwara offered Muslims space to offer Eid prayers, reported Anupam Trivedi in the The Hindustan Times, a newspaper based in India.
Due to the overnight rains, the Muslims who had gathered in large numbers to offer Eid rayers in a local ground could not proceed. Gurudwara Singh Sabha, on seeing this plight, welcomed them into the Gurudwara.
“Be it Hindus, Sikhs or Muslims, we have a strong bonding in Joshimath. The senior management from the Gurudwara sahib and the Muslim community held a short meeting on Saturday morning and made quick arrangements for the prayers,” Buta Singh, manager, Shri Hemkund Sahib gurudwara, told HT on phone. More than 500 Muslims offered Namaaz in the retiring hall of the gurdwara, he said.
“The incessant rains for the past couple of days had rendered offering Bakr-Eid Namaaz at the traditional Gandh Maidan and local municipal board hall difficult. This led us to approach Govindghat-based gurdwara management committee senior manager Seva Singh for permission to offer Namaaz there. The gurdwara has ample space to accommodate sizable devout,” said Salim Raja, an office bearer of Joshimath Muslim Committee.
This is not the first time that Sikhs have offered space for Eid prayers. On August 20, 2012, the Muslims prayed at the same gurudwara. Joshimath is believed to be the last place in the state towards the China border where Muslims offer Namaaz. Beyond Joshimath lies Badrinath, one of four shrines of the Chardham pilgrimage of Hindus.
“Though we keep hearing stories about growing hatred in the society, by Allah’s grace we never witnessed such negative things here,” said Rais Ahmad (50).
Joshimath falls in the Chamoli district home to revered Hindu shrine – Badrinath and Hemkund Sahib, the Sikh Gurudwara.
