DEHRADUN: A 15-year-old class 10 student from Dehradun has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting him to make it mandatory for religious institutions to donate 80% of their wealth to battle Covid-19 outbreak.
Interestingly, he has marked the letter also to 'All Gods' (Bhagwan ji, Allah, Waheguru, Jesus).
Abhinav Kumar Sharma, a student of Saint Joseph's Academy, in his letter through an email on March 26, 2020 pointed out that due to ongoing lockdown of 21-days, economy of the country is going to take a hit.
In his letter, he says: "I, therefore, request you to kindly request and make it mandatory for all religious trusts irrespective of their religion to donate 80% amount of 'God's Wealth' to the country by giving this to the PM relief fund."
The trigger behind the letter was reportedly after he witnessed a migrant worker nearby losing his job.
"I know how much money goes into all religious trusts and institutions. I hope our honourable PM will go to any extent to save and protect his people from everything- the epidemic, poverty, hunger and any other calamity, " says Abhinav who is preparing for his examinations.
The letter empathizes with countless migrant workers, daily wagers and homeless people who have lost their jobs.
.jpg?w=640&auto=format%2Ccompress)
He highlights the plight of the poor in his letter and says, "This health emergency will surely lead to a financial emergency due to which beggars, labourers etc would be on the verge of starvation. This lockdown may close small industries, factories, business. Unemployment may rise due to no business."
He reiterates his point by stating that 'God' will be happier and bless us all if this money in religious institutions saves God's children.
"We will have more faith in humanity, " he wrote to the PM.
Coming from the family of medical practitioners Abhinav is also aware of what doctors and other medical staff are going through.
"Doctors are our soldiers to fight this deadly virus. They need everything we can spare. I hope our government knows that and is providing them with all equipments and safety nets they need to fight this battle," says Abhinav.