Jan 28 2016 : The Times of India (Ahmedabad)
Palanpur:
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Jitubhai Invited 18,000 Widows To Bless His Son’s Marriage
Inviting widows to auspicious functions is still conside red a taboo, more so in ru ral areas. But Mehsa na-based businessman, Jitendra Patel, trashes these parochial beliefs with contempt.
On Wednesday, Patel, bet On Wednesday, Patel, better known as Jitubhai, invited as many as 18,000 widows from five districts of north Gujarat, to bless his younger son Ravi and his bride. Widows from Banaskantha, Mehsana, Sabarkantha, Patan and Aravalli districts were special guests at the marriage venue at Derol, about 12km from Himmatnagar.
“It was my heartfelt desi re that the couple should be blessed by widows, who are mostly neglected by the soci ety. Their presence is considered a bad omen at auspicious functions but I wanted to prove that all these beliefs are nothing but superstitions,“ Jitubhai told TOI.
What’s more. Every widow was presented a blanket and a sapling with a promise that they would carefully nurture the plant in their backyard.