MUMBAI: At a time when tensions between India and Pakistan are at an all time high, the head of a temple in Karachi has arrived in Mumbai, from where he will travel to Haridwar on Saturday for the ‘asthi visarjan’ of 160 Pakistani Hindus.
Shri Ram Nath Maharaj, whose ancestors had migrated to Pakistan from UP even before the Partition, heads the Shri Panchmukhi Hanuman Mandir, one of the most revered shrines for the Hindus in Pakistan.
Ram Nath Maharaj, whose family name is Mishra, is accompanied by his nephew Kabir, and is staying with relatives in Mulund. “Pakistani Hindus’ last wish is to have their ashes immersed in Ganga. We wanted to bring in more urns but only a few of us were able to secure visas,” he said.
He said that ashes immersion in Ganga were so important for Pakistani Hindus that the kin of the deceased were willing to wait for years to get such a chance. “Most of the people whose ashes we will immerse had died three or four years ago,” he said, adding that the last time he had visited India was five years ago, when he immersed ashes of 135 people.”