The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : Raising the bar for religious harmony

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Sunday, Aug 24, 2008
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

Raising the bar for religious harmony

J.S. Ifthekhar

Marriage mela sees 51 Muslim, Hindu, Christian couples tying nuptial knot

-PHOTO: Satish. H

Great moment: Hyderabad Welfare Society organised mass marriages for 51 couples belonging to various religions on Saturday.

HYDERABAD: The venue was Exhibition Grounds. And on display was communal harmony at its best. The motley crowd of Muslims, Hindus and Christians couldn’t wait for the big event. It was a mega marriage mela. A three in one delight, in fact.

The news of 51 couples tying the nuptial knot evoked lot of interest. What made it unique was the fact that the couples included 28 Muslims, 16 Hindus and 7 Christians. They entered wedlock under one roof – of course as per their religious rites. At one corner, Qazi Syed Shakir Ali, recited the ‘Khutba-e-Nikah’, yonder a pandit chanted the ‘pendli mantra’ and a little further Rev. Anil Kumar administered the wedding vows.

Unimaginable. But that’s exactly what happened at the Exhibition Grounds on Saturday. The common thread binding the newly weds is poverty. None of them are in a position to marry. Thanks to the Hyderabad Welfare Society (HWS), they achieved the near impossible at no cost.

Unnecessary expenses

For the HWS it is a matter of gratification that starting with a single marriage in 1985, today it could bestow wedding bliss on 51 couples. “The idea is to cut down unnecessary expenditure incurred on marriage which has made it impossible for the poor to think of marrying off their daughters”, says HWS president, Haji Ghouse Khan.

“It is such a relief. I couldn’t imagine my daughter is married off”, sobbed Yousuf Bee of Shankarpally. Her daughter, Rehana’s marriage was fixed two years ago but for want of money she couldn’t be married. Similar views were expressed by Rajeshwari on the marriage of her niece, Nareena.

A modest trousseau comprising a cot, an almirah, clothes, utensils and other essentials were given away to each bride. The HWS incurred an expenditure of Rs. 20,000 per marriage.

Former minister, K. Vijayarama Rao, former MP, Lal Jan Pasha, Siasat Editor, Zahid Ali Khan, spoke on the occasion and congratulated the newly weds.

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