Shale Mohammad who is the only Muslim in Ashok Gehlot’s cabinet has offered prayers at a Shiva temple in Rajasthan’s Jaisalmer days after taking responsibility of the minority affairs department. Mohammad who is the son of Muslim religious leader Gazi Fakir reached his constituency Pokhran in Jaisalmer on Sunday for the very first time after becoming a minister.
“Gods and goddesses don’t belong to any caste. It is not about Hindus and Muslims. Everyone has his faith. We have Ganga-Jamuni brotherhood which is in itself an example. Hindus and Muslims both have strong faith in Baba Ramdev (a temple in Ramdevra of local deity Baba Ramdev),” Mohammad told reporters after performing puja.
The minister said adding that he visited the temple and performed puja for some time due to his personal belief. Madhu Changani who is the priest of the temple said the minister has a long connection with the shrine and it was not the first time he performed puja in the temple.
“He had visited this temple during state assembly election as well. It was not the first time he visited the temple. He has some association with the temple,” he said. Gods and goddesses don’t belong to any caste, says Shale Mohammad as per the inputs from PTI,
Shale Mohammad performed puja for about 30 minutes following Hindu rituals. After that, he also performed ablution and then offered honey and milk on Lord Shiva’s idol, the priest added. Mohammad recently won the Pokhran seat in the state elections, getting the better of BJP’s Swami Pratap Puri, a spiritual leader and head of Taratara Math in Barmer district.
(With PTI inputs)
