In a remarkable interfaith gesture, distinguished Hindu statesman Rajan Zed
was warmly welcomed at the premier Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) in India
on November 20.

Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism headquartered in
Nevada (USA), met with the Vice Chancellor Zameer Uddin Shah and addressed
the faculty and research students of Department of Islamic Studies and
answered their questions. He was welcomed in the Department by its Chairman
Professor Zafarul Islam, an expert on Islamic jurisprudence, who introduced
Zed.

In his talks, Rajan Zed stressed the need of interfaith dialogue and
working together on issues of common interest like social/economic
development, freedom/human-rights, peace-keeping and peace-making, etc. He
also pointed out the need of bringing together the communities and learning
about the basics of the traditions of others.

Kabir Ahmed Khan, Assistant Librarian, showed Zed the rare collection of
Islamic books in its prestigious library and Dr. Rahat Abrar, Public
Relations Officer, took him around the campus and showed him historical
buildings.

Besides being the world renowned center of Islamic and Quranic studies,
AMU, whose history goes back to 1877 and first life member of whose
Students’ Union was Mahatma Gandhi, is spread in over 467 hectares and has
about 32,000 students. AMU also includes medical-dental-engineering-food
crafts-etc. colleges, diabetes-cardiology-wildlife centers, Horse Riding
Club, school for visually challenged and has centers in Kerala and West
Bengal. It offers 300 courses and draws students from world over. Its
alumni include President and Vice President of India, Maldives President,
President and Prime Minister of Pakistan, Bangladesh Prime Minister and
actor Naseeruddin Shah.