Two Indian men reach UAE on cycles to visit Makkha
Dubai, May 23: Two Indian men have arrived in the UAE on cycles pedalling 3,800-kilometer across three countries, three months after they set out on a cycling adventure to visit Makkah in Saudi Arabia.
Muhammed Saleem, 53, and his 42-year-old friend Rizwan Ahmad Khan are from Bangalore and have been cycling under the sun while fasting. They even lost their bicycles.
"Our bicycles got lost on our ferry boat ride from Bandar Abbas to the UAE. I was a little frustrated because it was the first day of fasting and it was too hot, But people in Sharjah port went out of their way to help us find our bicycles," Saleem said.
"We experienced many different cultures, ate different foods and prayed in so many places," Saleem told the Khaleej Times.
Saleem and Khan pedalled almost 1,300-kilometer in India, 700 to 800 kilometres in Oman, and 1,700 kilometres in Iran.
Originally, they planned to cycle their way through India, Pakistan, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia with no other means of transportation.
However, getting visas to Pakistan and Iraq was not easy.
"We decided to pedal to Oman, fly to Tehran and pedal all the way to Bandar Abbas, and then go through the UAE to Saudi Arabia", Saleem said.
The duo hopes to reach Makkah by July 25, just in time for Hajj that will start on August 9.
"From here, we will go to the Saudi border. Then, we will go to Riyadh, to Madina, and then to Makkah. My dream is to travel in Ihram cloth to Makkah, that is why we are going to Madina first," Saleem said.
This isn't the first time Saleem has embarked on such an adventure. He has been cycling for 35 years and has been a three-time state champion in India.
"I have cycled around Europe in 1989 and once pedalled from Kuwait to Dubai," he said.
Saleem and Khan have been pedalling 75 to 100 kilometres per day.
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AIMIM wins Malegaon Central seat by 162 votes
Malegaon (Maharashtra), Nov 23: In a closely contested election, Mohammad Ismail Abdul Khalique of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) has retained the Malegaon Central assembly seat, winning by a razor-thin margin of 162 votes.
This victory in the north Maharashtra constituency marks a significant turnaround for Khalique, who previously enjoyed a commanding lead in the 2019 elections, winning by over one lakh votes.
Khalique, an Islamic scholar, received a total of 1,09,653 votes this time, narrowly defeating his nearest rival, Asif Shaikh Rasheed of the Indian Secular Largest Assembly of Maharashtra party, who got 1,09,491 votes.
There were a total of 13 candidates contesting in this Muslim dominated constituency. Barring Khalique and Rasheed, two other candidates -- Shaan-e-Hind Nihal Ahmed of Samajwadi Party and Ejaz Baig Aziz Baig managed below 10,000 votes. Other remaining candidates were below 1,000 votes.
This election marks Khalique's third term as an MLA. He initially represented the Malegaon Central seat in 2009 as a member of the Jan Surajya Shakti party.
However, Khalique faced a setback in the 2014 elections when he contested under the banner of the Nationalist Congress Party and lost.
His return to the assembly in 2019 under the AIMIM banner solidified his political presence, and despite the significantly reduced margin this year, he has once again emerged victorious.
The results highlight the competitive nature of the Malegaon Central constituency and underscore Khalique's resilience in maintaining his position amidst changing political dynamics.
