Britain’s Prince Charles has visited a mosque in north-west London and met Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin, the top spiritual leader of Dawoodi Bohra Muslims.
Prince Charles, who met Syedna Burhanuddin and his son Prince Qaidjoher Ezzuddin on Wednesday, praised the Muslim leaders for valuing Islam and its traditions. Dawoodi Bohra Muslims, a sect of the Shia Muslims, numbers around 6,000 in Britain. “It is heart-warming for our community and all Muslims residing in the UK, that the heir to the throne of the country they live in values their religion and traditions,” Prince Ezzuddin told the gathering.
One of the key principles of the sect is “patriotism as part of the faith.” It encourages followers to make a positive contribution to the country they live in. The word Bohra means trader, and traditionally most members of the sect have been entrepreneurs – most notably, NRI entrepreneur, Sir Gulam Noon, whose curry empire supplies thousands of Indian meals to supermarkets.
