Recently, communal clashes broke out in Haryana’s Nuh district following a religious procession that took place on July 31. The Mewat region became the center of attention in all this. The region covers the states of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan. The Meo Muslim community lives in Nuh district of Haryana. Let us get to know this community better.
Getting to know the Meos
The Meo community adheres to syncretic traditions. They live in a backward area. The name of the area comes from the term “Meo”: Mewat. It includes Palwal, Gurgaon, Faridabad and Nuh along with Bharatpur and Alwar districts of Rajasthan along with several regions of western Uttar Pradesh. This also includes Mathura.
Let’s dive deeper into history
Kurukshetra University History Department Head and Faculty of Social Sciences Dean, Professor SK Chahal stated that Mewat was actually one of the subahs (provinces) during the reign of Emperor Akbar in India. Chahal stated that most historians believe that the Meos were not Muslims from the very beginning. In the 12th and 17th centuries, the Sultans of Delhi gradually converted them to Islam.
At the beginning of the 13th century, the Delhi Sultanate began with the rule of the Khilji dynasty. It was in the middle of the 16th century when it collapsed. History says that Aurangzeb was the last Mughal to rule in a dynasty in the 18th century. However, it is said that their rule continued even further.
However, another part of history contradicts the concept and speaks of a slower change. Professor Shail Mayaram, an expert on the ethnic composition of the community, says that the concept of conversion is actually a modern concept. No great complete conversions ever took place.
Categories: Trends
Source: newstars.edu.vn