Life of Ahmad — Page 778
THE WHITE MINARET as 778 naturally hate Muslim mosques and places of worship. (3) Some of them are such as have been convicted and punished either in cases started by my brother and father or due to their own aggression and violation of the law. (4) Some of them, like Imam D i n and Ni za m D i n, are people who have borne enmity towards me and my community from the very beginning. They are always raising obstacles in the performance of our religious duties. A short time ago they raised a wall in the lane which leads to the door of my mosque to block the way. It caused great inconvenience to me, my guests, my followers and the general public. It resulted in a court case which dragged on for about a year and a half; and it was only after heavy expense that the Court at last decided against them and the wall was demolished. They keep on trying like this. The Hindu complainants in this case sided with them and appeared as their witnesses. Now too they are in league with them. (5) Hindus are not required by religion or custom to observe purdah. Government officials all know it. On the other hand, the civilised societies of Hindus regard purdah as an obstacle to progress. (6) The residential houses of some of the complainants themselves are so high that they interfere with the privacy of other people’s houses. . . houses of people who observe purdah