Muslims join Hindus to celebrate Diwali in Pakistan

Members of the Muslim community joined Hindus to celebrate Diwali at the Swaminarayan Temple here.

Karachi's Sunni and Shia Muslims participated in the celebrations at the Temple on MA Jinnah road on Sunday to honour the triumph of good over evil, of light over darkness, and to once again set an example of inter-faith harmony, Pakistani media reported.

Somewhere 'salam' was replied with 'Jai Shri Ram' and 'Happy Diwali' with 'Thank You', while the arrangements were made not only by Hindus but Muslims as well, especially social and political activists, who were seen assisting the minority community to make their festival as memorable as possible.

"It's a decades-old tradition at the mandir, where Hindus and Muslims get together for the celebration of holy occasions," said Vijay Maharaj, a custodian of the Temple.

He said that such celebrations provide an opportunity to other communities to closely observe the Hindus faith and their religious culture.

On the occasion of Diwali, the Hindu community share their joys and love with one another as well as with other communities, he added.

Qurat Mirza of the Women's Action Forum said that the presence of government officials and political leaders at the Diwali celebrations was negligible, but the presence of civil society and social activists was encouraging enough.IANS