PM Modi was seen walking, holding hands with the head of the community, Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin.
Mumbai:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a new campus of an educational institute of the Dawoodi Bohra Muslims on Friday in an outreach to one of Mumbai’s most influential communities ahead of the high-stakes municipal elections in the city.
PM Modi was seen walking, holding hands with the head of the community, Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin, at the new campus of Aljamea-tus-Saifiyah (The Saifee Academy), the principal educational institute of the Dawoodi Bohra community, at Marol in suburban Andheri.
“I have known four generations of Syedna sahab’s family. I am here as a family member, not a PM. You have fulfilled a 150-year-old dream by setting up this institute,” he said.
The institute works to protect the learning traditions and literary culture of the community, and the new centre will impart Arabic learning.
The event was part of PM Modi’s second visit to the city in less than a month, which saw him unveil several infrastructure projects earlier in the day. On January 19, the PM inaugurated and laid foundation stones for projects worth over Rs 38,000 crore in the financial capital.
The Prime Minister’s visit assumes significance given the upcoming elections to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) – the richest civic body in India.
