Islamic scholar Maulana Abdul Karim Parekh dead

Nagpur, Sep 11 (UNI) Noted Islamic scholar Padma Bhushan Maulana Abdul Karim Parekh died today after suffering a heart attack at a private hospital here. He was 80.

Known for his commentaries on the Holy Quran, Maulana Parekh had a thorough understanding of Islam besides a deep knowledge of other religions like Hinduism, Christianity, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism.

He had translated the Holy Quran into Urdu, Hindi, English and Gujarati. Maulana Parekh had command over Hindi, Urdu, Marathi, Arabic, Gujarati and Sanskrit. He was honoured with the Padma Bhushan in 2001, besides several other awards, including the Pride of India Award from the American Federation of Muslims From India.

In his condolence message, Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh said in Parekh's death the country had lost a great humanitarian and an ideal symbol of secularism.

UNI