Sheru loves them all
Sheru loves them all
By Sheru
Published: Sun, 21 July 2013 10:57 PM
Sunday salad
Sheru does not care. This is what Sheru has been saying for the past two decades. But, the Gool incident has changed Sheru. How can anybody remain indifferent after such gruesome incidents? Sheru cares for all the people who achieved martyrdom and also those who sustained injuries. But this is not the only time when a mosque has been desecrated.
Sheru's acquaintance narrated the experiences of his cousin. Fifteen years ago, he went to a mosque to offer congregationalFriday prayers. The mosque was jam-packed. The imam was delivering a sermon and people were listening keenly.
After the imam concluded his sermon, people in the mosque stood up for prayers. The imam recited Quranic verses in his sweet voice. Suddenly the voice of the imam was drowned in a deafening explosion. It was a grenade explosion. The nimazees in the last row ran for their lives. Sheru’s acquaintance also ran away and sought refuge in his house. But, his cousin was in the front row and could not, therefore, come out of the mosque.
The troopers arrived and laid siege to the mosque. All of them, including the imam, were taken into custody. One by one they were interrogated in the nearby camp. The cousin of Sheru’s acquaintance was also interrogated. He was asked to take off his clothes. He refused. A soldier came rushing towards him and kicked him in the abdomen. He fell in the adjacent room. When he pulled himself together, he found his co-nimazees staring at him. All of them including the imam had been stripped. They were all naked.
He did not smile. He was angered and in protest took off all his clothes. After a few hours all of them were set free. The imam still delivers a sermon on Fridays. All nimazees who were stripped that day still come to the mosque. Nothing has changed. But, the person Sheru is talking about has changed. Whenever he comes across the imam, blood rushes to his ears. “How dare they strip the imam?”
“Whenever I see the imam, his naked figure appears in my optical centre. I find it extremely difficult to offer prayers in the mosque”, he informed his cousin.
Sheru was moved. He cares for the imam. He cares for all the nimazees who were stripped on that fateful day. He cares for his acquaintance’s cousin. But then, somebody must tell him that the show has to go on. The people can understand the pain they underwent in the torture chamber. Sheru cares for them. Sheru cares for the Gool people. Sheru loves them all.
