Three days after Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray’s directive to celebrate Eid-ul-Adha on August 1 in a symbolic manner in Maharashtra, the state government on Friday issued guidelines appealing to Muslims to keep it a simple and a low-key affair.
Home Minister Anil Deshmukh, who released the guidelines, insisted that because of the coronavirus crisis, crowding should be avoided during celebrations.
He reminded that religious functions and festivals are banned during the present Covid-19 pandemic. He urged Muslims to offer namaaz at home, and not at mosques or dargahs.
According to the guidelines, mandis for the purchase of animals will remain closed and therefore, people should purchase goats and sheep online or by phone. The government has prohibited the transportation of goats and sheep. This clause was incorporated after Thackeray and government officials had, at the July 14 meeting strongly opposed the setting up of special mandis for the sale of animals, hinting that it might cause spread of the virus, thereby impacting the containment efforts.
Symbolic 'qurbani', the ritual sacrifice of goats, was proposed. The government has rejected the demand for the creation of temporary abattoirs to conduct the qurbani, sought by some elected representatives.
The government has made it amply clear that lockdown curbs, especially in containment zones, will remain in place and they will not be relaxed for Eid-ul-Adha. People have been urged not to gather or assemble in large numbers to celebrate, to avoid the spread of virus.
Further, it will be binding on the members of the community to strictly follow rules put in place by the departments of relief and rehabilitation, public health, environment and medical education and also by municipal corporations and the local administration to check virus transmission.
It must be mentioned that even during Ramzan, the state government had urged the Muslim community to offer prayers and break their fast inside their homes, instead of gathering at mosques or other public places, in view of the outbreak. Community members were also told not to gather at homes or building terraces or grounds to offer namaz, prayers or for iftar.
