Insta
Uproar In Muslim Majority Malaysia After Education Ministry Calls Pongal A ‘Hindu Harvest Festival’
People celebrating Pongal. (Photo: INDRANIL MUKHERJEE/AFP/Getty Images)
A letter issued by Malaysia’s education ministry describing the harvest festival Pongal as a “Hindu religious festival” has resulted in an uproar among members of the Muslim majority country, Straits Times has reported.
The education department in a letter on 13 January called Pongal a “celebration for Hindu worshippers", which resulted in a backlash from many who claimed that Pongal is a “Tamil harvest festival” and has nothing to do with religion.
Following the outrage, the education ministry has clarified that the letter was based on Islamic Development Department (Jakim) guidelines and was meant to assuage concerned Muslim parents with regards to their children celebrating it.
The ministry added that it did not wish to prevent Pongal celebrations at school and sought to inculcate unity among the school children. It quoted the Jakim syariah expert panel to state that it is okay for Muslims to acknowledge and wish their friends and neighbours a happy Pongal without acknowledging their religion.
This comes a few days after a controversy had erupted over a government school in Selangor being forced to remove some Chinese New Year decorations.
Support Swarajya's 50 Ground Reports Project & Sponsor A Story
Every general election Swarajya does a 50 ground reports project.
Aimed only at serious readers and those who appreciate the nuances of political undercurrents, the project provides a sense of India's electoral landscape. As you know, these reports are produced after considerable investment of travel, time and effort on the ground.
This time too we've kicked off the project in style and have covered over 30 constituencies already. If you're someone who appreciates such work and have enjoyed our coverage please consider sponsoring a ground report for just Rs 2999 to Rs 19,999 - it goes a long way in helping us produce more quality reportage.
You can also back this project by becoming a subscriber for as little as Rs 999 - so do click on this links and choose a plan that suits you and back us.
Click below to contribute.
Latest
