Muslim youths of Kidderpore in southwest Kolkata have joined hands with their Hindu friends, like in previous years, to organise a Ganesh puja on Bhukailash Road.
The puja committee of Jubilee Garden Club has two secretaries — one a Hindu and the other a Muslim.
Members of both communities have been taking part in the festival since the club decided to organise Ganesh Puja a few years ago.
On Thursday, committee members from both communities carried the deity from the artisan’s studio to the pandal.
“Hum log ek saath bade huye hain, ek saath khel kud karein hain, toh phir puja ke time alag kaisey hongey? Ek i saath na manayengey? (We have all grown up together, have played together, then how can we be different during festivals? Won’t we celebrate together?),” said Murshid Alam, a joint secretary of the puja committee.
Murshid, who runs a food stall in Chandni Chowk in central Kolkata, and his Muslim friends make it a point to gather at the pandal every evening by 5pm till the idol is immersed and participate in all activities.
“There are a few who want to create a wedge on religious lines. But sensible people won’t believe in such divisions. That is the culture of Kolkata,” he said.
Religious differences are the last thing Murshid’s Hindu friends want to bother about.
“It is always a collective effort out here. We participate in Id,” said Jitu Singh, the club’s general secretary.
