The videos showing men from a Hindu right-wing group beating two Kashmiri dry fruit vendors in Lucknow unsettled 50-year-old Mohammad Younus of Pulwama. It, however, did not held him back from working voluntarily for the renovation of a temple.
For past few weeks, Younus along with several otherresidents have been renovating a century old Shiv temple at sleepy Achanvillage in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district.
Younus says that he always wanted to see again his Panditbrothers striking a clapper against a sound bow in the temple, standing rightalongside a mosque in the village.
“Often I remember those images of pre-1990s when thebells were ringing in the temple.”
Around 50 Pandit families were residing in the village.However, when most of the Pandits left the valley in early nineties, just asingle family of the community stayed back.
“We were four families who decided not to leave ourhomeland. However, after few years the other three also left,” said SanjaySharma, who along with his family continues to live in the village.
As the years passed, the roof of the temple caved in and thewalls started withering while a spring in its premises also dried up. Beforethe structure would collapse completely, the local Auqaf committee chipped in.
“We approached the district administration severaltimes and asked them to do something for the renovation of the temple,” saidMir Nazir, chairman of the Auqaf committee.
Finally, the administration allocated Rs 4 lakh for therenovation work.
“As soon as the renovation work was taken up, localscame forward and worked alongside the labourers,” said Nazir.
He said that at a time when Kashmiri students and businessmen were being attacked and humiliated outside Kashmir, their village sent outa message of communal harmony and camaraderie.
Sanjay Sharma said that it was because of the efforts oflocal Auqaf committee that the renovation work took off.
“The temple had been in ruins for almost three decadesand was now about to crumble. A single family could not have made it happen,”he said.
Sharma complained that his family has been living in povertyand government barely paid any attention towards them.
“Here too locals came to my rescue. They got me the job of bank guard at local ATM,” he said.
Gulzar Bhat