http://clipmarks.com/clipper/arifsali/date/2008/7/13/http://rss.clipmarks.com/clipper/arifsali/date/2008/7/13/15Clip, tag and save information that's important to you. Bookmarks save entire pages...Clipmarks save the specific content that matters to you!en-ushttp://clipmarks.com/clipmark/68D97628-04CF-46E4-8918-9DBAA6494A43/<b>clipped by:</b> <a href="http://clipmarks.com/clipper/arifsali/">arifsali</a><br><div border="2" style="margin-top: 10px; border:#000000 1px solid;" width="90%"><div style="background-color:"><div align="center" width="100%" style="padding:4px;margin-bottom:4px;background-color:#666666;overflow:hidden;"><span style="color:#FFFFFF;font-weight:bold;">Clip Source: <a style="color:#FFFFFF;" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7473019.stm" title="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7473019.stm">news.bbc.co.uk</a></span></div><div style="padding: 10px;"><div style="text-align:left;"><P>Mr Singh is a member of the Kathat community in Rajasthan and follows what his community believes is a pledge undertaken by their forefathers. </P></div></div><hr size="2" color="#666666" /><div style="padding: 10px;"><div style="text-align:left;"><P>Legend has it that the Mehrat, Kathat and Cheeta communities - with a combined total of one million people in four districts of central Rajasthan - are the descendants of the Hindu ruler of the warrior caste, Prithviraj Chauhan. </P></div></div><hr size="2" color="#666666" /><div style="padding: 10px;"><div style="text-align:left;"><P>The three communities also have strong Islamic connections, because many centuries ago, their forefathers undertook a pledge to follow three Muslim practices. </P></div></div><hr size="2" color="#666666" /><div style="padding: 10px;"><div style="text-align:left;"><P>These include the circumcision for the newborn male children in the community, eating halal meat and burying their dead. </P></div></div><hr size="2" color="#666666" /><div style="padding: 10px;"><div style="text-align:left;"><P>That is the tradition many have followed, keeping the word of their ancestors. But it has also led to them facing something of a faith-based identity crisis. </P></div></div><hr size="2" color="#666666" /><div style="padding: 10px;"><div style="text-align:left;">A majority of them are poor and illiterate. They are people with a mixed Hindu-Muslim identity.</div></div><hr size="2" color="#666666" /><div style="padding: 10px;"><div style="text-align:left;">"We don't care about being Hindu or Muslim. It is sheer politics," he says. </div></div><hr size="2" color="#666666" /><div style="padding: 10px;"><img src="http://clipmarks.com/image_cache/arifsali/512/FB9F41DE-C3C5-42C5-9B2D-344A87FD9B10.jpg" alt="Mehrats and Kathats gather at a local market in Rajasthan" /><br /></div></div></div><br><div style="margin-bottom: 40px;">Tags: <a href="http://clipmarks.com/tags/islam/" rel="tag">islam</a>, <a href="http://clipmarks.com/tags/hinduism/" rel="tag">hinduism</a>, <a href="http://clipmarks.com/tags/india/" rel="tag">india</a>, <a href="http://clipmarks.com/tags/culture/" rel="tag">culture</a>, <a href="http://clipmarks.com/tags/religion/" rel="tag">religion</a></div>http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7473019.stmSun, 13 Jul 2008 05:16:50 GMT