MARGAO
As communal tensions have risen in the State over the past week due to Subash Velingkar’s comments about St Francis Xavier and the protests that followed, Benaulim fisherman Pele Fernandes has shared a message of peace, brotherhood, and community harmony among different groups.
Pele displayed a wooden sculpture of Hindu gods, explaining that he found the handcrafted statue in the sea during a recent cyclone. “When I discovered the wooden statue washed ashore, I immediately retrieved it. I recognised that it depicted Hindu gods, so out of respect, I took it home, and I have kept it ever since,” he said.
He added, “I was offered money to hand over the handcrafted panel, but I chose to keep it out of respect for the gods. I am a Catholic, but we are taught to respect other religions. In Goa, Hindus, Christians, and Muslims have lived in harmony for many years. Nothing should disrupt our brotherhood,” he concluded.
