An Intermediate second year student B. Padmaja bagged second place with cash prize of ₹25,000 on Sunday for her Telugu essay on the life of Prophet Muhammad.
The competition titled ‘Inspired by Prophet Muhammad’ was an initiative of the Jamaat-e-Islami Hind (JIH) affiliate Student’s Islamic Organisation.
Ms. Padmaja arrived in the city from Jagtiyal specifically to participate in the competition.
Speaking to The Hindu about what inspired to pen the essay, she said, “I read about the virtues of Prophet Muhammad and decided to enter the competition. He saw everybody as equal and took measures to protect women’s rights.” It did not take long for Ms. Padmaja to prepare for the competition. “The JIH gave me a book. I read it for about an hour a day before the competition. Then I spoke to my friends who are Muslims. After this, I wrote the essay,” she said.
And how does she intend to use the prize money? “I will use it to pay for my education,” she said.
With a keen interest on participating in similar competitions centred around different themes, Ms. Padmaja said, “It’s important that people look for good things in different faiths. Only this can help all of us co-exist.”
While Ms. Padmaja was awarded the second prize, the first place went to Syeda Haajer, also an Intermediate second year student. She was awarded a cash prize of ₹50,000. A graduation student, Mariya Gouher, bagged the third place and was awarded ₹15,000.
Around 20,000 students in different parts of the State wrote the essay in Telugu, Urdu and English. The winners were awarded prizes at Khaja Mansion where JIH Telangana and Odisha president Hamed Mohammed Khan spoke of the importance of pluralism and building bridges between different communities.
