‘Will not allow divisive forces to vitiate Ggm atmosphere’
Residents say groups trying to cause tension will be boycotted
GURUGRAM: Participants of a mahapanchayat that was organised in Jharsa village near Sector 39 on Sunday said they would not allow divisive forces to vitiate the atmosphere in Gurugram and cause communal problems.
The gathering, which was held in the wake of continued protests by members of rightwing organisations against offering namaz in open spaces, saw the participation of at least 200 people belonging to different faiths.
On April 26, the police had arrested six persons for allegedly disrupting namaz that was being offered on a vacant plot in Sector 43 on April 20.
The issue had snowballed into a controversy after that and rightwing organisations demanded earmarking spots for offering namaz.
The Sarva Khap Sarva Dharma Bhaichara and Samrasta Panchayat was organised under the leadership of Chaudhary Mahindar Singh Thakran, the pradhan of Jharsa 360 khap.
Thakran said the purpose of the panchayat was to ensure that peace and harmony of Gurugram are not disrupted.
“We want to ensure that everyone in the city lives in unity and bonhomie. For this purpose, our core committee, comprising eight people, has decided to constitute a larger body that will ensure that peace prevails in the city and those disrupting the unity of the city are boycotted,” Thakran said.
“Our Muslim brothers will offer namaz in the mosques and we will request the district administration to withdraw the cases against the youngsters who had earlier disrupted namaz,” Thakran said. Those present at the gathering said they wanted to assuage the fears of the minority community by sharing a message of brotherhood and solidarity.
“The good thing about this meeting is that people belonging to different faiths have come forward. We want the issue to be resolved, to the extent possible, amicably through dialogue,” said Adnan Abidi, a resident of Gurugram, who participated in the meeting.
On the issue of namaz being offered in the open, Abidi said there is a logistical issue of dearth of spaces for offering namaz.
“The population of people is in lakhs whereas mosques are only 14 in number. Where does one offer namaz in such a scenario? No one is interested in offering namaz in dust or heat, but we don’t have a choice. Jumma namaz is important,” Abidi said.
“However, Islam says that namaz should never be offered in a way that it causes unease to others and we have been trying to ensure that. We have initiated an intercommunity dialogue with the administration and hope that continues,” Abidi said.
Arti Jaiman, a resident of Sector 50, said the panchayat was a positive step towards initiating community outreach in Gurugram.
“Such shared spaces provide a platform to all sides to come together and articulate a vision for Gurugram,” Jaiman said.
Vinita Singh, a member of the Gurugram Nagrik Ekta Manch, a citizen’s group, also participated in the mahapanchayat.
“Something like this (namaz disruption) shouldn’t have taken place. Our biggest concern was the way the intimidation took place. We want to send out the message that intimidation of this nature will not be tolerated,” Singh, of Sector 50, said.