EnglishNation for PeaceReligion for Peace

The Pathan who saved the Temples of Pathra

Today 19 of the 34 temples restored to their former glory in Pathra in West Bengal.

The Pathan who saved the Temples of Pathra“Bash on.” That’s probably what Yeasin Pathan says to himself every morning, when he wakes up. Once you meet the fragile 66-year-old you just can’t ignore his never-say-die mentality. How else can you understand the grit of a Class IX dropout and a devout Muslim who has been crusading for the last 42 years to save 34 temples?

Ever since he was a child Pathan has been in love with Hindu temples. Looked upon by both Hindus and Muslims with suspicion for this long love affair, Pathan is today inured to the jibes, threats and hurdles.

The tale starts at Pathan’s childhood. Captivated by the terracotta temples in Pathra, a village near his own, in West Bengal’s Midnapore district, his dilapidated condition made him wonder. So by the time he was 17, he’d set off his dream of ‘saving the temples.’ This was in the year 1971. He had no degree in archeology or history to put on his curriculum vitae, but Pathan knew that the temples were “part of our heritage, and people should be stopped from going away with bits of it.”

Garnering support

First, Pathan got the villagers, Hindus, Muslims and Adivasis together. He told the Pathra people that survival of their heritage for posterity was in their hands. Pathan found himself against opposition, as expected. His community ‘s citizens were furious that he proposed maintaining institutions where gods are worshipped. “The area’s Hindus were miffed too, because I prevented them from stealing and selling the bricks off the temples,” he says, smiling.

Statues for sale

Even the descendants of the zamindars who built the structures tried to make money through the sale of carvings and statues. Apparently Pathan was surrounded by a ring of fire. That’s when inherent wisdom convinced him that he needed to give the local people a dream to aspire to: if Pathra were a tourist destination, “the village and its nearby communities would have roads, electricity, water, and industry.”

The local community under his leadership set about clearing the wild growth of weeds around the monuments first. Pathan then organized rallies to seek funds at district headquarters in Midnapore. There were scuffles, and he would rush to Pathra to bring police to Midnapore.

His efforts however started to bear fruit.

Money started to flow in; IIT Kharagpur stepped in to assist with the conservation. Pathan set up an NGO, the Pathra Archeological Preservation Committee, which also became a forum for social peace apart from its core agenda. The then Deputy Chairperson of the Planning Commission, Pranab Mukherjee, approved Pathra for some 20 lakh. Pathan’s greatest triumph came in 2003, when India’s Archeological Survey (ASI) took over the restoration work.

Guide for tourists

Pathan realized meanwhile that he needed a steady stream of income. Now, he had a wife and four kids. In 1974 he became an attendant at a school in Hatiholka, his home, in order to make ends meet. He also served as a stringer for the newspapers and Pathan was their guide when curious visitors visited Pathra. Yet his mission to protect the temples never wavered.

While residents of Pathra have acknowledged his visionary work over the years, he has faced challenging times. Gasping for air (his heart has two blockages), he recounts how he had to go into hiding after the 1992 demolition of the Babri Masjid. “Muslims tried to lynch me when Hindus were smashing mosques for defending temples.”

Only one guard

Today 19 of Pathra ‘s 34 temples are restored to their former glory. All under Pathan’s eagle eye, which rudely says: “What a wide area, and only one guard to defend it.” ASI beautifies some 9.5 acres around the temples. Pathan’s latest campaign is to get a reimbursement from 70 farmers for the land they had to give up around the temple.

“You know how it’s … the state would take its own sweet time, unless we make a noise,” he says.

In 2012, the magnificent Pathan, dressed in a cotton shirt, trousers and chappals, retired from his school job and got a pension of 9,600 a month. His family now wants him to take it easy. The years of travel, the poor sleep and frequent meals, all have taken on his health a toll. He can’t afford the heart and kidney care.

“Stay at home; take some time, they say. But if I quit now, all those years of struggle are going down the drain. Now is when it will come to pass, “says a tired yet eternally hopeful Pathan.

 

Show More

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

CAPTCHA ImageChange Image

Back to top button
Translate »