The unique way by which a retired Muslim school teacher in a remote village of Indian state of Gujrat inspired his students was by constructing a temple in the village school, said a report by Times of India.
Popular among the children of Marida village as Abdul Chacha, Abdul Vora decided to leave a legacy in the Hindu-dominated Mirada village by constructing a Saraswati temple in the village school.
“I am a teacher first and everything else later. For me, my children are my inspiration and theirs is goddess Saraswati. So the temple,” Vora told TOI.
Vora, who had been teaching at the school for nearly three decades, spent a large amount of his savings on the temple’s construction and according to him, many of the villagers pooled in whatever they could.
According to Vora, the construction of the temple took five years.
In another unparalleled gesture, he even taught children how to perform pooja at the temple.
TOI quoted a school teacher as saying, “the temple project was initated by Abdul Saheb and later the village residents joined in.”
Vora belongs to Andhari village near Gujrat’s Nadiad city and his family was one of three Muslim families that lived there.
While training in a PTC college, Vora got inspired by the Saraswati temple in Kathlal and wished to build a temple for the village where he taught as well.
“I have always got respect from every individual in this village. I served as a teacher here and would like to serve its people,” Vora said.
According to the TOI report, Vora’s eldest son Sajid Vora was recently shot dead by unidentified assailants in Nadiad town.