India and Pakistan, though born out of single mother, never shared a cordial relationship with each other. The bond between two countries have never been of love and cordiality. The bitterness continues despite the fact that these two piece of land have risen from a same motherland. Amidst the enmity, in Muktsar district of Punjab, Bharat and Pakistan are brothers and love each other more than anyone else in the world. Want to know how? Read more here.
A Punjab man Gurmeet Singh named his sons Bharat and Pakistan. He named his elder son Bharat, who is now 12 years old. Two years later, he had another son and decided to name him Pakistan. Initially, the family raised concerns on the name of brothers, but eventually everyone got used to it.
Ever since India became a free country, Gurmeet Singh and his family have faced the wrath of communal disharmony twice. In 1947, his grandparents had to shift from Pakistan to Hansi. Then his family was a target during the communal riots of 1984. His father went through a lot to start his life afresh when he shifted from Hansi to Malout.
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Now, Gurmeet Singh is 47 year old. He runs a shop named Bharat-Pakistan Wood Works on the Fazilka-Delhi national highway. While speaking to Tribune India, he spoke:
“I hate violence. Our family has seen conflicts between the two countries and the idea of naming my sons Bharat and Pakistan is to see the two nations share bonhomie. Naming my kids did not go down well with some people, who warned me that Pakistanis would abduct my son. Some said it was wrong to name a child Pakistan in our country. Even cops had come to my shop, which I opened about two years ago and asked me to remove the word Pakistan from the hoarding installed outside. Once I told them the idea behind this, they returned.”
He faced a lot of flak for naming his son Pakistan. His own family, neighbourhood and the school administration where he wanted to admit his son, never backed his decision. He tried his level bes to convince the authorities, but they were adamant to change his name. This led to Gurmeet Singh changing his son’s name to Karandeep. However, at his home, Karandeep is still referred to as Pakistan.
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