Muslim men help in Hindu girl's cremation in Varanasi

In a rare gesture, a group of Muslim men not only carried the body of a 19-year-old Hindu girl on their shoulders for cremation in Varanasi but also chanted "Ram naam satya hai' along the way.

The incident took place in the city's Harhua Deeh area. The girl, Soni succumbed to malaria on Sunday.

Her father Horilal Vishwakarma was paralysed a few years ago and her mother is a heart patient. Soni's brother is the sole earning member in the family.

When Soni died, the Muslim men living in the neighbourhood came to Horilal's house and said that he should not worry about the cremation.

The men, some of them wearing their skull caps, made arrangements and then carried the bier on their shoulders to the Manikarnika Ghat for cremation.

As per Hindu tradition, they chanted "Ram naam satya hai", along the way. They helped Soni's brother perform the last rites and some of them even gave financial assistance.

Shakeel, one of the men who helped in the cremation, said: "Yehi satya hai (This is the truth). This is the finality of life but we continue to fight among ourselves on petty issues." IANS