Gandhi ashram's Muslim head dead; prefers cremation over burial

October 9, 2016

Ahmedabad, Oct 9: "My life is my message", said Mahatma Gandhi. And one of Bapu's original disciples, Abdul Hamid Kureshi, 89 -the chair man of the Sabarmati Ashram - has enclosed a message in his death. Kureshi, who was also an eminent lawyer, chose to be cremated and not buried.gandhi

Kureshi breathed his last at the breakfast table in his residence in Swastik Society, Navrangpura, on Saturday morning. Sabarmati Ashram was the cradle of Bapu's revolutionary ideas to win freedom from the British.

It was a rare sight at the Mukti Dham crematorium in Paldi where Kureshi's illustrious family gathered for his final rites. Senior members of the higher judiciary and distinguished lawyers stood alongside the grieving family . Kureshi was the grandson of Imam Saheb Abdul Kadir Bawazir, a close associate of Bapu in South Africa.Bapu referred to Imam Bawazir as his "sahodar", brother born from the same mother.

"Kureshi saheb wished to be cremated because he did not want to waste land with his burial," said Bharat Naik, the sonin-law of Kureshi's brother, Wahid Kureshi. "In fact, he made me a witness to the decision in the presence of other family members." Over the past four years, Kureshi had been reminding his son, Justice Akil Kureshi, and Naik that they should ensure he is cremated. He asserted that if anyone objected, the person should be told of his last wish.Kureshi was cremated after 7 pm.

Kureshi was born in the Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad where Imam Bawazir had settled with Bapu in 1915. Born in 1927, Kureshi grew up on Bapu's lap till Bapu embarked on the Dandi March in 1930. Kureshi was one of the few kids who ate tomato slices from Bapu's lunch. Bapu wrote letters to a young Kureshi, which were later donated to the National Archives of India.

"Kureshi's father, Ghulam Rasool, was part of `Arun Tukdi' that walked ahead of the Dandi March procession," said Sabarmati Ashram director Tridip Suhrud. "The team had to ensure that arrangements for meetings and halts were in place."

After Ghulam Rasool and his wife were arrested during the Dandi March, Abdul Hamid, his brother Wahid, and sister Sultana were brought up for a few years by Anasuya Sarabhai, said the secretary of the ashram, Amrut Modi. "Sarabhai was a Gandhian and pioneer of women's labour movement in India," he said. Rizwan Kadri, an Ahmedabad-based historian, said that in September1942 Kureshi was arrested in Detroj during the Quit India movement.

Kureshi became the chairman of the Sabarmati Ashram trust three years ago. A peace activist at heart, Kureshi worked to build bridges between Hindus and Muslims and penned a book titled " Agnipariksha" after the 1969 communal riots in Gujarat.

Comments

shaji
 - 
Monday, 10 Oct 2016

None can stop if any one wants to follow Sataan and enter Hell. I think this idiot deserves it. He did not agree to waste land but agree to pollute atmosphere thereby creating pollution. I am sure he was a follower of Satan and he will meet his Guru in the Hell.

Onte Moothra, …
 - 
Monday, 10 Oct 2016

Good muslim, doesn't want to meet 72 houris.

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News Network
January 12,2020

Bengaluru, Jan 12: Protesters plan to intensify their anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Act movement from sit-down satyagrahas and rallies to street and door-to-door campaigns in different parts of the city.

The street campaigns began on January 1 with 20-30 volunteers of Hum Bharat Ke Log, reaching out to people in Koramangala and Whitefield and explaining the CAA, National Population Register (NPR), National Register of Citizens (NRC) and related issues. They have organised four campaigns.

According to Zia Nomani, member of Hum Bharat Ke Log, the campaign will intensify soon. “Over 200-400 volunteers will organise nukkad sabhas and other activities around JP Nagar and Banashankari,” Nomani said.

She added that though protests began as a medium for people to vent their concerns, more needs to be done.

“We have realised that many people have begun working on their personal documents and want to help them understand what CAA is all about,” Nomani said.

Volunteers will talk to people at street junctions, discuss issues and run signature campaigns. They say: “Our movement is focussed on reaching out to people. Pro-CAA workers too started a door-to-door campaign last week.”

Avani Chokshi, an advocate who participated in a campaign, said though people had a cursory idea about these issues, they didn’t know the details. “It through such campaigns that we can reach more people. It’s important to talk to people who haven’t made up their mind about the issues or are even pro-CAA,” said Avani, adding, “It hard to combat hatred in a short span of time. The movement needs to be sustained.”

Activist Geeta Menon, who has been at the forefront of the street campaign, says they were heckled at some places.

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News Network
June 6,2020

Bengaluru, Jun 6: Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Saturday said hotels and restaurants would be allowed to re-open, but the precautionary measures laid down by the Centre against coronavirus were mandatory.

The Chief Minister on Friday held a meeting with the tourism and transport department, also stakeholders, regarding revival of tourism in the state.

Hotels associations and transport companies have said they would follow the guidelines issued by the government, an official press release said here.

The Karnataka government had said it would go by the Centre's direction on opening religious places of worship, shopping malls, hotels, restaurants and other hospitality services on June 8.

Buses, hotels and taxi owners association placed some demands at the meeting, the release said, adding that Yediyurappa informed them that he would examine their demands and take appropriate decisions.

The Chief Minister also released a handout regarding the guidelines that need to be followed as the tourism department is opening hotels, guest houses and tourist destinations.

Deputy Chief Minister Laxman Savadi, Tourism Minister C T Ravi and senior officials of the department participated in the meeting.

The government had, on Thursday, said safaris, trekking, jungle lodges and resorts in areas that fall outside the COVID-19 containment zones can re-open provided they adhere to social distancing, hygiene as issued by the governments.

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News Network
February 7,2020

Mangaluru, Feb 7: In an attempt to promote menstrual hygiene among women, the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) has installed vending machines and incinerators to dispense and dispose off sanitary napkins at 10 bus stands of the state including Mangaluru.

The machines have been installed inside the women's washroom and women can purchase sanitary napkins from the vending machines by inserting five rupee coins.

Nearly 100 napkins can be stored in the vending machines at a time and housekeeping personnel have been instructed to replenish the stock, as and when required.

While directions on how to use the machine have been displayed near the machines, people can get seek assistance from housekeeping staff if needed.

Initially, the machines were installed at two depots in Bengaluru on a pilot basis and in the second phase it has been extended to 10 KSRTC bus depots.

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