CHANDIGARH: A Punjabi translation of the Quran turned out to be one of the top selling books at the Book Fair in Sector 17, Chandigarh. It became the centre of attraction for many readers at the stall set up by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community of Chandigarh, which sold more than 50 copies in just two days.

“We are selling the translated books at the minimum possible cost of Rs350. We have translations in three languages – Hindi, English, and Punjabi. Since the Quran is originally in Arabic, we decided to provide the translations in the language that people here understand”, said Abdul Alim, owner of the stall. He further added: “People in Chandigarh are more into Punjabi, so in just two days, we have sold over 50 copies of the book, and have ordered for 60 more. We aim to promote ‘Love for all, hatred for none‘, so we are giving a book – World Crisis and the Pathway to Peace – free of cost. People who are religious or those interested in issues like peace and humanity are most of the buyers here.”

“I found reading the Quran in Punjabi quite interesting. I want to read it in full to see how they have managed to translate it perfectly in Punjabi,” said Karan Bansal, a resident of Sector 35, who bought two copies of the book. Manjali Gandhi, a resident of Sector 40, who bought all the three translations (English, Hindi, and Punjabi) of the holy book, said: “I always wanted to read the Quran, but as it is in Arabic, I was unable to read it. Now that I have got the translated version of the book in English, I have also bought it for my mother and father as well in Hindi and Punjabi, as they prefer to read in those languages.”