Lucknow: In a gesture of communal harmony, a Muslim businessman in Lucknow has decided to donate his land and money for the construction of 51 temples at different locations in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.
Rashid Naseem, Chairman of Shine Group, has made the announcement of construction of temples to preserve “secular beliefs in the society”.
According to Rashid, it is a step that will reciprocate the 'Ganga Jamuni Tehzeeb of Awadh', a phrase used to define the fusion of Hindu and Muslim cultures in the hinterland.
Speaking to News18, Rashid said, "Being a Muslim doesn’t stop me from working towards the betterment of other religions. I think this is a step towards communal harmony and an attempt to convey the message of brotherhood and peace to the society.”
The first temple built by Rashid is almost ready on the Allahabad-Varanasi highway, which will tentatively be inaugurated in a few days in the month of 'Sawan'.
Rashid, who has his roots in Allahabad, started off as a realtor in 2013 and went on to expand his business into travel and tourism, water purifiers and other verticals as well.
"At the moment, we have a target to complete the construction of 21 temples by the end of this year. But we will get a total of 51 temples constructed by the end of next year. We have decided to build these temples in parts of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar,” he added.
Rashid, who considers PM Narendra Modi as his inspiration, travels approximately 50,000 kilometres every month to keep a tab on his different business verticals.
"When our PM can travel so much for us, why can’t I? It’s always good to travel for business, it’s never a boring day for me,” said Rashid, who has won accolades for his move.
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