Holiday restored

When the list of bank holidays for the year 2002 declared under the Negotiable Instruments Act did not include August 21, the Shahenshahi New Year commonly referred to as the Parsi New Year, many members of the community in India were upset. Not necessarily because they would be deprived of their traditional holiday festivities which usually start with a visit to the fire-temple in the morning, exchange of greetings and sweets during the day, a hearty repast in the afternoon followed by a visit to the movies or natak (play) in the evening and culminating with drinks and a dinner. They felt that the Parsis as a minority, despite their national contribution, were being overlooked by the government.

The general media carried letters expressing the wrath of some individuals. In one such letter in The Indian Express, Phiroze B. Javeri from Bombay wrote, "The contribution of Parsis in building our nation has not been sustained by sops offered by the government but by the goodness of our heart and a sense of duty toward the country we have made our home. The government will do as it pleases because the politicians who constitute it assume that the country belongs to them; Parsis believe that we belong to this country and we will continue to do what we should.”

But the Maharashtra government did apparently accede to the "forceful plea” made to the chief minister Vilasrao Desh-mukh by Jamshed Guzder in his capacity as chairman of the Bombay Parsi Punchayet and president of the Federation of Parsi Zoroastrian Anju-mans of India, according to a press release issued by the Punchayet. The holiday has been restored under a special notification issued by the General Administration Department of the Government of Maharashtra, reports the Punchayet.