Bangladeshi Muslims are building a 300-yr-old Kali temple. Now they want Modi’s help

The 300-year-old Sasan Kali temple at Basurdhuljhuri village in Bangladesh’s Magura district — 176 km from Dhaka — was partly washed away in 2000 floods. Today, Muslims and Hindus have come together to rebuild it and want the Bangladesh and the Indian governments to help them. In a Bangladesh that is increasingly witnessing communal violence, especially during Hindu festivities, Basurdhuljhuri serves to strengthen the country’s secular credentials.

Kali’s call

Every year this season, Dhaka-based political journalist Sahidul Hasan Khokon makes it a point to drive back to Basurdhuljhuri, his native village for Kali pujo at the 300-year-old temple. The entire village, along with the likes of Khokon who migrated to big cities, gather before Kali. Lakhs of devotees visit this non-descript temple every year with the belief that the goddess will grant them their wishes. This year will be different — the village and the devotees will offer back to the Kali. Khokon and his friends plan to form a committee to restore the temple to its original glory.

“There was a big flood in 2000 that washed away many houses in the village and destroyed a part of the temple. Villagers managed to save the Kali idol. Now, we plan to form a committee and formally appeal to both the Bangladesh and Indian government to help us build a proper temple in the village,” Khokon, 43, tells The Print.