Muslims left this Punjab village after Partition, Sikhs and Hindus look after their mosque
In the skyline of Hedon Bet, it’s hard to miss the imposing century-old mosque that lies nestled right at the centre of the interior village in Ludhiana. The crumbling walls of the mosque share their boundaries with a temple. But it’s not just walls that the mosque shares with the temple. It also shares its ethos and history.
Not a single Muslim has lived in this Punjab village since Partition. But the mosque, which lies abandoned since the cataclysmic 1947 event, is taken care of by Sikhs and Hindu villagers. To them, the place of faith is sacred.…
Singh said he took over the caretaker responsibilities of the mosque in 2009 from a Sufi saint who took care of the mosque for decades. “I don’t read or write Urdu. I don’t know anything from the Quran. But before that Saint died, he made me remember some sentences which I think are from the Quran. I recite these in a loud voice every morning and evening in the mosque. It’s a place of worship and I am blessed I do this duty,” said Singh.…
