Religion News – Weekly Newsletter for January 24-31, 2011

Monday, January 31, 2011

Concern for sparrows on spiritual leader’s 100th birthday

MUMBAI – The forthcoming 100th birthday of spiritual head of the Dawoodi Bohra sect Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin in March will be celebrated by paying special attention to the humble sparrow, an official said here Monday.

The Burhani Foundation and Nature Forever Society (NFS) have teamed up to distribute 52,000 bird feeders (trays with seeds kept … Read : Concern for sparrows on spiritual leader’s 100th birthday.

Miss Pakistan World backs Veena Malik in row with clerics

TORONTO – Miss Pakistan World Annie Rupani Sunday came out in support of Pakistani actress Veena Malik who is under fire from the Muslim clergy in her country for getting too close with Indian actor Ashmit Patel during her participation in Bigg Boss-4 in India.

Slamming Mufti Abdul Qawi who said in a TV interview …. Original article on Gaea Times at : Miss Pakistan World backs Veena Malik in row with clerics.

Gujarat not to aid rebuilding riot-damaged religious buildings

Gandhinagar, Jan 24 ((IANS) Making its policy clear on the issue of granting aid to religious structures damaged in the 2002 riots, the Gujarat government Monday told the state high court that it will not provide any financial aid to them.

The government pleader, P.K. Jani conveyed this to the first bench comprising Chief …. Original article : Gujarat not to aid rebuilding riot-damaged religious buildings.

Court asks police to maintain peace during Shia procession

NEW DELHI – The Delhi High Court Monday asked police to ensure peace in communally-sensitive Aliganj area near Qanati Masjid in south Delhi in view of Chehlum procession to be taken out Tuesday by members of the Shia community.

Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw also allowed the mosque management to install a temporary screen at the …. Original article : Court asks police to maintain peace during Shia procession.

India’s Islamic, Buddhist heritage on display

NEW DELHI – Be it Sufi traditions or Bidri art, India’s Islamic heritage was highlighted at the Republic Day parade here Wednesday, an event watched by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono of Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim nation.

The tableaus from Bihar and Karnataka showcased a Sufi shrine and Bidri craft, a field dominated by Muslim … Read more >>>.

Deoband chief offers to quit over Modi remarks row

LUCKNOW – Caught in controversy over his alleged praise for Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, Deoband Islamic seminary’s vice chancellor Maulana Mohammad Ghulam Vastanvi Tuesday offered to step down from the position he had been appointed to barely a few weeks back.

According to a Darul Uloom source, Maulana Vastanvi has tendered his resignation, which …. Original article : Deoband chief offers to quit over Modi remarks row.

Muslim clerics join hands for polio eradication in Uttar Pradesh

MEERUT – From sending greeting cards to issuing printed appeals and making announcements from the mosque loudspeaker – Muslim clerics in western Uttar Pradesh are doing everything, and with much success, to motivate their community to get children immunised against polio.

Their cajoling has had a good effect – as from 1,700 houses in the …. Original article : Muslim clerics join hands for polio eradication in Uttar Pradesh.

Panel clears BJP, Hindu groups in Karnataka church attacks

BANGALORE – The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), its government in Karnataka and pro-Hindu outfits had no hand in the series of attacks on churches in the state in 2008, a judicial panel said Friday.

“There is no basis to the apprehension of petitioners that politicians, BJP, sangha parivar (as pro-Hindu outfits are called) and the … Read more »».

Ancient Fatehpuri mosque to be restored to old glory

NEW DELHI – The ageing Fatehpuri mosque in Old Delhi is awaiting a much-needed facelift that can extend by some 100 years the life of one of the grandest Islamic monuments in India.

If and when the restoration work begins, it will take up to two years to restore the original glory of the mosque …. Read the original article : Ancient Fatehpuri mosque to be restored to old glory.

US civil liberties groups back Sikh rights

WASHINGTON – A Sikh advocacy group joined by several other civil rights organizations have urged California’s Indian-American Attorney General Kamala Harris not to oppose a bearded Sikh who wants to serve as a prison guard.

Trilochan Singh Oberoi was denied a job as a Corrections Officer in Folsom because of a claim by Department … Read more : US civil liberties groups back Sikh rights.

Buddhist monks walking for world peace reach Agra

AGRA – Nearly 300 Buddhist monks from Thailand, Poland, England, Ireland and Germany, walking across India for world peace and welfare, have reached the Taj city.

They were given a warm reception by the local Buddhist community here Thursday and a colourful tented township has come up at the Budh Vihar, near the Agra …. Original article : Buddhist monks walking for world peace reach Agra.

Online Islamic law encyclopaedia ‘Wiqifiqh’ launched

Tehran, Jan 28 (IANS/AKI) The Islamic Information and Documentation Centre in the Iranian capital, Tehran, has launched the free online Islamic law encyclopaedia, ‘Wikifiqh’ in farsi. English and Arabic versions are also planned.

The encyclopaedia contains entries on millions of concepts in Islamic law (’fiqh’ in Arabic) and the Muslim faith.
Part of the ‘Wikifiqh’ …. Source : Online Islamic law encyclopaedia ‘Wiqifiqh’ launched.

Nepal Christians fight against grave injustice

KATHMANDU – When Nepali boxer Raju Budha Magar received a killer punch on the head during a tourney in central Nepal earlier this month and fell in the ring, it was the start of an unbelievable nightmare for the family of the 22-year-old.

Budha Magar died the next day without regaining consciousness and his family … Read the original article on Gaea Times at : Nepal Christians fight against grave injustice.

11 years after his escape, Karmapa remains as controversial

DHARAMSALA – His flight to freedom from a monastery near Lhasa, the capital of Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR) in China, was as mysterious as controversial. The Indian government has banned him from going to the Rumtek Monastery in Sikkim. And now, the 17th Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje, has landed in another controversy with currency worth …. Source article : 11 years after his escape, Karmapa remains as controversial.

Supreme Court dismisses plea to stop Haj subsidy

NEW DELHI – The Supreme Court Friday dismissed a petition by former Bharatiya Janata Party MP and Hindu ideologue Praful Goradia seeking the abolition of the subsidy given to Haj pilgrims.

There is no force in this petition and it is dismissed, the court said.
The court also said that a very small expenditure in … Read the original article on Gaea Times at : Supreme Court dismisses plea to stop Haj subsidy.

Who is the Karmapa? (To go with Rs.6 crore currency seized from Karmapa’s monastery)

DHARAMSALA – An important institution in the Tibetan religious set up, the Karmapa Lama is the spiritual head of the Karma Kagyu sect, one of the four sects of Tibetan Buddhism and one of the richest.

In the Tibetan religious hierarchy, he is considered the third most important Tibetan religious head after the institutions … Original source on Gaea Times at : Who is the Karmapa? (To go with Rs.6 crore currency seized from Karmapa’s monastery).

Panel clears BJP, Hindu groups of church attacks; opposition cries foul

BANGALORE – The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), its government in Karnataka and pro-Hindu outfits had no hand in the attacks on churches in the state in 2008, a judicial panel said Friday. The opposition Congress and Janata Dal-Secular, however, slammed the findings, saying “the government got what it sought.”

“There is no basis to the …. Read the original article : Panel clears BJP, Hindu groups of church attacks; opposition cries foul.

After Christians, ancient Nepal tribe fights for burial rights

KATHMANDU – Close on the heels of Nepal’s Christian community warning the government that they would discard their dead in front of the prime minister’s office unless granted a burial site of their own, now an ancient Nepali tribe is also up in arms, demanding the same right.

The Kirats, an ancient tribe of mighty … Read : After Christians, ancient Nepal tribe fights for burial rights.