A Sikh merchant, 70-year old Sukhpal Singh Bedi has donated a piece of land for the construction of a mosque in Muzaffarnagar. According to the reports, Bedi, a social activist from Purkazi town in Muzaffarnagar has donated a 900 sq foot plot for the construction of a mosque.
The rare expression comes in a bid to foster communal union in the area. Bedi, who runs a cloth shop in the town, asserted that he does not have much property but enough to share with others. He said it his tribute to Baba Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, who vouched for peace and love his entire life.
https://twitter.com/ashoswai/status/1199021169506181123
Bedis are considered the direct descendant of Baba Guru Nanak, hence Sukhpal Singh said he felt he has a greater responsibility to act on the teachings of Baba Guru Nanak. He said he made a small effort to quash the growing discord among communities in the past few months.
Sukhpal Singh Bedi belonged to Bedian village near Lahore and migrated to India and settled in Indian Punjab after partition. The man handed over the documents of the land to the Zahir Farooqui, the Nagar Panchayat Chairman. Farooqui hailed the act and expressed gratitude to Bedi on behalf of the Muslim population of the area.
Read more: Babri Mosque Case: Indian Supreme Court Rules in Favour of Hindus
In another heartening gesture, a Sikh father-son duo in New York has been raising money for the construction of mosques in Nadala, India. Darshan Singh and his son Jaspreet Singh living in New York, have been running a campaign on ‘Go Fund Me‘ crowdfunding website in which more than 35 people have donated. The duo has collected 1600 dollars out of the necessary $10,000 needed for the arrangements of construction of mosques.
Darshan Singh came to know about the plight of Muslims living in the area from his barber who is a Muslim from Nadala. Barber told him that Muslims have to pray in shifts in the small place at the back of a shop in the village. Since the capacity of the place is small it can’t accommodate a larger number of Muslims for prayers.
#Sikh man donates 900 sq ft land for building mosque in Uttar Pradesh.
This is beauty of Indian culture.
Every time my respect to #Sikkhism increase. pic.twitter.com/5yDIhGs1wo— Rohit Jha (@RohitForIndia) November 25, 2019
There are nearly 200 to 300 Muslim families living in the area. The area has Sikh gurdwaras and Churches but no mosques. Hence the Sikh New Yorkers have taken up the mission to facilitate the Muslim population of the village.
The brotherly gestures from the Sikh community are anticipated to be pouring out due to the opening of Kartarpur Corridor for the Sikh community by a Muslim premier of Pakistan, Imran Khan and the Ayodya verdict on the demolition of Babri mosque. While Ayodhya verdict stoked reactions from Muslims, Pakistan’s peace gesture of Kartarpur Corridor won the hearts of the Sikh community.
Read more: Pakistan & Sikhs: A Relation of Love, Respect & Religion
Earlier, this month Indian Supreme Court’s decision in historic Ayodhya verdict ended up in favor of the Hindu community paving the way for the construction of the temple at the site of demolished Babri mosque. In 1992, Hindu mobs had destroyed the 460-years-old mosque. The decision left the Muslim population dejected and annoyed. Interestingly, the Ayodhya verdict coincided with the inauguration of Kartarpur Corridor on 9th November.