Our haveli in India

AFTER the interview was over, Shamshad Ahmad mentioned a personal experience in India which bears recording:

"Noorani Saheb, I have during these 60 years had many opportunities to visit India, but mostly on official business. In 1999, the Government of India invited me to visit my ancestral place at their invitation. But somehow because of the Kargil situation, my visit did not materialise. In 60 years I did not visit that place. I got an opportunity only last year to visit my ancestral place, which is called Khera Gajju Khan, a small township in Patiala State which was owned by my ancestors. When I went there the people who received me were the children of the people who had been living with my ancestors there.

The whole village is inhabited by Hindus. They took me to our haveli, which has totally disappeared because of lack of care. But what deeply touched me was that in the garden adjacent to our haveli, all my ancestors were buried; my father, my sister, my grandfather, grand grandfather, everybody. I was surprised that their graves were looked after with the utmost care. They were painted and were covered with cloth. Even lamps were placed there. They told me that every Thursday they burnt those lamps there. I was deeply touched by this gesture that the people in that area had shown to my ancestors; obviously because their ancestors had been telling them stories of my ancestors since they had founded that place.

What I need to point out is that even my children do not know that much about my ancestors as much as those people knew about my ancestors. I am really deeply touched. This is the human aspect that one can never forget."

A.G. Noorani