After meeting ex-RSS chief, Shia cleric approves ‘Vande Mataram’

•  ‘Vande Mataram’

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  • ‘I see nothing wrong for a Muslim to recite Vande Mataram as long as it means salutation to the nation and does not amount to offering prayers,’ Shia scholar and All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) member Maulana Hameedul Hasan told IANS.
  • This follows the Maulana’s ‘heart-to-heart’ talk with former Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) chief K.C. Sudarshan, who in an unprecedented move drove down to the former’s residence here Sunday.

  • The Sunday meeting here was organised at the initiative of the Muslim Rashtriya Manch, a RSS brainchild.

    It was rare occasion when a Maulana talked about misunderstandings among Hindus about the Koran and a RSS bigwig eulogised the life and achievements of Prophet Mohammad.

  • Seeking to dispel the common impression that Muslims were responsible for the creation of Pakistan, the Maulana said: ‘No Muslim has any soft corner for Pakistan. The bulk of Indian Muslims opposed the country’s partition.’

    Interestingly, RSS stalwart Sudarshan also seemed to second the Maulana’s view by adding: ‘It were the British who brought about the partition in collusion with Jawaharlal Nehru.’