By Shafeeq Hudawi, TwoCircles.net
Amid attempts by Sangh Parivar to tarnish the image of Malappuram, the Muslim majority district in Kerala, a temple here showed the way by organising an Iftar party for Muslims residing in its locality.The Shree Narasimhamoorthy temple at Punnathala here hosted an iftar party which was attended by at least 500 Muslims. Besides, vegetable Biryani and Iftar packs were distributed to more than 300 Muslim houses here. The function was held as part of the one week long temple Punar Prathishta festival.
Active participation of Muslims here made Iftar a unique affair. The temple committee elected a local Muslim leader Mammu Master as the chairman of Iftar committee. “Ramadan is not only a month to recite Quran and worship God. It’s also the time for strengthening the bond between the communities,” Mammu Master said.
The function was planned by temple authorities after Muslims here contributed substantially for renovation works of the temple. Punnathala has got only 72 Hindu families out of the total 1300 families here. More than half of the renovation expense, estimated at about Rs 20 lakh, was contributed by Muslims here.
Youngsters from both communities volunteered all duties including setting up of venue and food supply. Temple committee president Unnikrishnan Nair said the function was organised in order to keep the tradition of harmonious living intact. “Our fathers and forefathers lived here in harmony. And we want to keep it alive,” said Unnikrishnan Nair.