One of the major festivals in Gujarat – nine nights of Navaratri may have ended amid controversy over entry of Muslim youth in Garba venues following diktats of right wing organisations like Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajarang Dal, but at the same time the State also observed instances of communal harmony as the two religious leaders — Morari Bapu as well as Saiyed Mahendi Bapu — set example of communal harmony showing generosity for the members of the other community.
A Hindu religious preacher — Moraridas Hariyani aka Morari Bapu set an example of friendship by sponsoring his childhood friend Yunus Malek for Haj. Morari Bapu funded around Rs6 lakh to Malek, who is a small time ice-cream vendor and his wife for the pilgrimage.
“Recently when Malek came to meet Bapu’s Ashram in Talgajarada village in Bhavnagar district, Bapu casually asked him whether he completed Haj pilgrimage or not. Malek replied that Haj was not in his destiny as he is a small time vendor. Instantly Bapu told him to prepare for Mecca and don’t bother for money,” said a close aide of Morari Bapu.
In similar instance, a Muslim cleric Saiyed Mahendi Bapu, a resident of Ratol village, nearly one kilometre from Talgajarada village donated 6 bighas of from his large chunk of ancestral land for expansion of an ancient Shiva temple. The Muslim spiritual leader handed over land papers to temple management that too in presence of Morari Bapu.
During the Navratri, Police had to detain VHP workers in Godhra and other places in the State, who tried to be indentified as revelers on the basis of religion. Besides, the cultural capital of Gujarat – Vadodara also witnessed communal tension following a message in social media.