Sahebaan Community Forum’s Eid Milan held in Padubidri, focus on unity, community growth
Udupi: The Sahebaan Community Forum (SCF) of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts came together on Sunday to celebrate Eid Milan at Premier Greens in Padubidri. The event turned out to be a day of togetherness, celebration and strong messages about unity, leadership, and helping each other grow as a community.
The programme began at 8 am with fun games and quiz competitions that kept the participants engaged. Soon after, the formal inauguration was held with the presence of key guests and respected members of the community.
The event began on a spiritual note with Qirath recited by Inaya Ayesha Mubeen. This was followed by the welcome address by Afroz Assadi, who thanked everyone for turning up in large numbers and said that the forum was created to bring people together and to remind everyone that community progress depends on participation and shared efforts.
Iqbal Manna, Secretary of SCF, gave a brief introduction about the forum. He said that the forum was not formed just to host events, but to build a strong platform that connects families, supports students, encourages youth, and gives people a space where they can come together to talk, share, and grow. “We want this forum to be a place where every Sahebaan feels seen, heard and supported,” he said.
The chief guest, Siraj Ahmed, Chairman and Managing Director of In-Land Builders, praised the efforts of the organisers and especially appreciated the leadership of Afroz Assadi. “Our community has always had talent and potential, but we have lacked strong leadership. Afroz has shown what it means to take responsibility and lead from the front. If more people take that step, our community will be in a much better place,” he said. He also stressed that personal opinions should not come in the way of unity. “It’s time we leave behind small differences and think about the bigger picture. Only when we are united, we can move forward,” he added. He assured his full support for future activities of the forum.
Nasir Syed, Founder and CMD of Creative House Scaffolding, Dubai, expressed happiness over the growth of the community. “It feels good to see so many people come forward. We have people in different professions and different walks of life. If we all join hands, I’m sure our community will continue to grow. We must also make sure more families and individuals from both Dakshina Kannada and Udupi take part in these gatherings,” he said.
Matheen Ahmed Chilmi, MD of Petrosolutions FZE, Sharjah, focused on the importance of supporting those who are struggling. “A community is only strong when even its weakest members feel supported. We should not treat this forum just as a place to celebrate. It should also be a place where people can share their problems, get guidance, and find support. Let us be there for each other in both good and bad times,” he said. He also assured his complete support to the forum and encouraged others to come forward in whatever way they can.
The event was conducted by Aliya Khan and Riffath Gurkar, who served as the comperes for the day. Several students were also recognized and honored for their academic performances during the last academic year.
Following the inauguration, the rest of the day was filled with games and entertainment programmes for both children and adults. The activities were set to continue till 4:30 pm.
The Management Committee of Sahebaan Community Forum was introduced during the today's Eid Milan function.
President : Afroze Assadi
Vice President : Juned
Secretary : M. Iqbal Manna
Treasurer : Rafiq Assadi
Committee members :-
Dr. Ruksar Anjum
Dr. Firdos, Principal
Ashfaq Ahmed, C. A
Kabir Ali, Architect
Mohammed Ifthikar Adil, Coffee Estate
.
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Delhi CM Rekha Gupta accuses Mamata Banerjee of stalling SIR; TMC hits back
Kolkata (PTI): Alleging that her West Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee had approached the Supreme Court to stall the SIR exercise to prevent the identification of infiltrators, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Sunday claimed that the people of the state have made up their minds to dislodge the Trinamool Congress from power.
The TMC countered strongly, urging Gupta to "look into her own backyard" and accused her of making absurd allegations against the TMC government without checking facts.
Addressing participants at the 'Nari Sankalp Yatra' organised by the BJP's women's wing at Science City auditorium here, Gupta alleged that the "hands-off" and appeasement policies of the TMC government had allowed thousands of infiltrators to enter the state in recent years.
She claimed that this had put a strain on basic rights such as access to water, electricity, ration, education, livelihood and the right to vote for genuine citizens.
"She wants to perpetuate this and hence is trying to stall the SIR exercise, which aims at identifying and deporting infiltrators. Imagine a chief minister going to the apex court to argue against an exercise meant to ensure free and fair polls," Gupta said.
The BJP leader alleged that appeasement politics had reached an "alarming level" under the TMC regime.
Raising concerns over women's safety, she claimed that women in the state were not secure despite having a woman chief minister.
Referring to the rape-murder of a woman doctor at RG Kar Hospital, Gupta alleged that the state government had failed to respond adequately to such crimes.
She also referred to the alleged rape of a woman medic in Durgapur and another law student on a Kolkata college campus, claiming that criminals had been emboldened to commit brutalities against women.
She alleged that in crimes against women, overall crime incidents and child marriages, West Bengal remained among the top -- "a slur on a state which once led intellectual and social movements and set examples for the rest of the country," she said.
Criticising the state government's welfare initiatives, she said schemes such as Kanyashree were built on "false claims" and asserted that women needed security rather than assurances.
Accusing the state government of blocking central schemes, Gupta alleged that funds worth "lakhs of crores of rupees" had not reached the poor due to non-implementation of programmes such as Ayushman Bharat, PM Awas Yojana and Jal Jeevan Mission by the state.
"You are only interested in renaming projects and taking credit," she said.
Gupta also alleged that the education sector in the state had been adversely affected, saying several state-run schools had closed due to a shortage of teachers and that the government was opposed to the National Education Policy.
Drawing a comparison with BJP-ruled Delhi, Gupta said, "People have already voted out 'Bhaia' (a reference to former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal). Now it is your turn to bid farewell to 'Didi'." Calling upon women to resist what she termed "strong-arm tactics", she urged them to assert their strength, invoking the imagery of Goddess Durga.
"Bengal has the right to live with dignity, and women have the right to live with dignity," she added.
Reacting to Gupta's allegations, West Bengal Women and Child Welfare minister Shashi Panja accused her of making "absurd allegations" against the Trinamool Congress government ahead of elections.
Panja alleged that during Gupta's tenure in Delhi, several incidents had raised serious concerns, including reports of missing young women and a blast near the Red Fort.
She also criticised the air pollution situation in the national capital, claiming that people were struggling to breathe.
The TMC leader said that despite being in power for a year, Gupta was making "tall claims" instead of addressing key issues in Delhi.
Panja further alleged that the Delhi CM visited West Bengal during elections to "peddle false allegations" against the state government.
Rebutting Gupta, the TMC said in a post on X said, "Madam why did you go off-script again? For your edification, here are the cold, hard facts: In total cases of crimes (IPC + SLL), Bengal ranks a respectable 15th, far safer than BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Gujarat, which languish near the bottom."
"In overall crime rate, Bengal sits comfortably at 28th. Who's second? Your own Delhi. Double Engine Gujarat and Haryana grab 4th and 5th as top-tier crime havens," the TMC said.
"In child marriage, Assam again takes the shameful pole position. And yet you dare lecture Bengal? Stop embarrassing yourself, stop the hypocrisy, and maybe fix the rotting mess in your own backyard before pointing fingers at a state that's outperforming your disasters on every key metric," the TMC countered.
