Muslim priests at 900-year-old Shiva temple in Kashmir.by Entrepreneur.Ravinder Singh

Ghulam Hassan, who takes care of the Shiva temple in Pahalgam.
Pahalgam (Jammu and Kashmir): Situated on the banks of the icy Lidder river, a 900-year-old Shiva temple is the only Hindu shrine in the Kashmir valley which has Muslim priests.

After the migration of Kashmiri Pandits from a nearby village, two Muslim priests -- Mohammad Abdullah and Ghulam Hassan -- kept the doors of the Mamalaka temple open and the bells tolling.

"We not only took care of the temple but also held aarti everyday," Ghulam Hassan said.

Besides ensuring the safety of the 3-foot-long black stone shivaling, Abdullah and Hassan have ensured that no devotee who visits the shrine goes without prasad even for one day.

Built by Raja Jai Suria, the temple was once a compulsory stopover for pilgrims going to the Amarnath cave shrine in the South Kashmir Himalayas.

The temple was for long run by a local association of Kashmiri Pandits headed by Pandit Radha Krishen.

After Radha Krishen's migration from Kashmir in 1989, the temple became the property of the state archaeology, archives, and museum department and a protected monument.

While leaving, Radha Krishen gave charge of the temple to his friend Abdul Bhat, a Muslim, and asked him to keep the gates of the temple open. Keeping the promise, Bhat took care of the temple till his transfer from the area in 2004.

After that Mohammad Abdullah and Ghulam Hassan were entrusted with the task of maintaining the temple.

"We have faith in Lord Shiva," Ghulam Hassan said. "We not only maintained the temple and undertook repairs, but also ensured that the temple remains fully functional despite threats from militants.

"We have fulfilled our task of guarding this shrine for Kashmiri Pandits. It is theirs. We wish they return and take back control of the temple."

The temple, which has images of Ganesh, Parvati, and Hanuman carved in stone, also houses a natural spring.

Abdullah and Hassan said the number of Hindu devotees to the temple has increased slightly in the past four years. These include some Kashmiri Pandit families who had left the area and come visiting once a year, as well as tourists.

Baba Ramdev to challenge HC verdict on homosexuals .. by Entrepreneur.Ravinder Singh

Yoga guru Baba Ramdev will approach the Supreme Court on Wednesday challenging the Delhi High Court judgement legalising gay sex among the consenting adults.

The petition is likely to be filed on Wednesday, July 8, lawyers associated with Ramdev said.

Lawyers Suresh Sharma and Gandharva Makker said the petition assailing the High Court verdict was to be filed on Tuesday but was delayed due to "unavoidable circumstances" .

They said the yoga guru has challenged the July 2 judgement contending that homosexual activities are not only against public morality, public health and healthy environment but also against the interest of the society.

"...homosexual activities which are otherwise unnatural there is high risk of exposure of a large chunk of population to dangerous sexually transmitted diseases including HIV/AIDS," the petition, likely to be filed, said.

"The decision of the High Court, if allowed to sustain will have catastrophic effects on the moral fabric of society and will jeopardise the institution of marriage itself. This offends the structure of Indian value system, Indian culture and traditions, as derived from religious scriptures," it said.

Ramdev, quoting Spanish psychiatrist Enrique Rojas, contended that homosexuality is a disease that is curable.

"It can be treated like any other congenital defect. Such tendencies can be treated by yoga, pranayam and other meditation techniques," he said in the petition.

The High Court, in a landmark verdict, legalised gay sex among consenting adults, which was earlier an offence under Section 377 of Indian Penal Code with punishment up to life imprisonment.

The verdict had retained the penal provision for non consenting gay and homosexual acts involving minors.

Ramdev, in his petition, contended that legislative mandate under section 377 of IPC did not infringe the right to privacy of persons indulging in homosexual activities as held by the High Court.

He maintained that section 377 is not in violation of right to dignity of an individual and reduction in purview in the penal provision would aid in promoting homosexual activities which are primarily responsible for spread of HIV.

Ramdev said in the petition that the High Court has erred by adjudicating Section 377 to be in violation of fundamental rights "The High Court has erred in its ruling by interpreting the terminology sex as sexual orientation. In fact, the term sex referred under Article 15 is in relation to the male or the female sex. It can't be interpreted in context to the sexual orientation of a person," the petition said.

He alleged the verdict would promote homosexual activities which would adversely affect population growth in the country.

"Homosexual relationships, if encouraged, would bring population growth of a country to a halt and may deprive this country of its greatest asset of human resources," he said.