It was more than an act of communal harmony; it was a gesture of goodwill and kinship. A mosque in Kozhikode district postponed celebrations for Milad-un-Nabi by a week for a Hindu wedding that was scheduled on Sunday. This as the mosque’s festivities would get in the way of the wedding.
Two weeks ago, the Mahallu committee of Idivetti Juma Masjid in Paleri called a meeting to plan the annual celebration on November 10. At that time, someone reminded the committee of a wedding that was to be held on the same day. The wedding of Vinu Prasad and Prathyuksha was to be held at the bride’s residence, which was close to the mosque.
Keeping the wedding in mind, the committee decided to postpone their celebrations despite no request coming in from the family.
"Every year during Milad-un-Nabi hundreds of people come here to participate in the celebrations. There will be traffic jams, loud speakers are used, decorations and lot of temporary shops will be set up near the road. This can be troublesome for the wedding. So, we decided to postpone it happily," NC Abdu Rahman, Mahallu Committee Secretary and also a school teacher told TNM.
Prathyuksha, daughter of late Narayanan Nambiar and Indira who has lived near the mosque for several years, visited the Mahallu committee members after the wedding to express her gratitude.
"We maintain good relations with the mosque all these years. We are thankful that they did this, although we didn’t make a request. They came here and informed us, and also blessed my daughter," Indira told the media on Sunday. Indira also said that her family and her used to participate in the mosque’s celebrations every year.
All members of the committee also participated in the wedding.
"In the present times, only we common people can spearhead peacemaking and secularism. We at the ground level have to think, and act sensibly. Whatever the political scenario is we can live peacefully with love and consideration to others," Abdu Rahman said.
The mosque plans to hold Milad-un-Nabi celebrations on November 17.