Friday 5th June: A deceased Zoroastrian woman from the Parsi community was given a Hindu cremation by members of the Hindu community in Navsari, Gujarat. The 55-year-old who died on Thursday, 4th June following illness, had married a Muslim man and lived in Navsari. Navsari is home to one of the oldest Zoroastrian communities in India. Parsis, one of the two major Zoroastrian communities in India, are descendants of 7th century refugees escaping Islamic persecution from what is now Iran. The other Indian Zoroastrian community being the Iranis who migrated from Iran during the British Era. Parsis observe strict prohibitions on inter-faith marriage and Parsi women are not considered Zoroastrian if they marry outside the faith. The deceased therefore was not allowed to take part in Parsi community gatherings following her marriage, including being barred from her own siblings’ weddings.
Following her death, her husband contacted the Parsi community for arranging a Zoroastrian funeral. He explained that despite their marriage, she did not convert to Islam and continued observing Parsi rituals. Parsi leaders refused to support and hence he approached members of his own community for burial in a Muslim graveyard. After the Muslim community also refused to support, Sajan Bharwad from the Navsari branch of the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), stepped in to restore the dignity of the deceased by offering a Hindu funeral. The rigidity of both Parsi and Muslim leaders at a very sensitive time stands in contrast with the openness and accommodative nature of the Hindu Dharma. Speaking to local media, Sajan Bharwad explained, “We then carried out the cremation as per Hindu rituals on Friday and handed over the ashes to her husband. It was a pious duty”.