Lucknow: In a goodwill gesture and to avoid any kind of
unwanted incident, executive committee member of the All India Muslim
Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) and Imam of the Aishbagh Eidgah Maulana
Rashid Farangi Mahali, along with Shia cleric Maulana Kalbe Jawad Naqvi,
has decided to change the timings of Friday prayers citing Holi
festivities.
Muslim clerics have also urged mosques in mixed population areas to
postpone their Friday prayers on March 2 keeping sentiments of Hindu
community in mind.
At one hand Khalid Rasheed Farangi Mahali has shifted the Friday Prayer
timing from 12:45 pm to 1:45 pm for Sunnis, the Friday prayers at Asafi
Mosque for the Shia community will be held at 1 pm instead of the
regular 12:22 pm, said Imam-e-Jumah, Maulana Kalbe Jawad Naqvi.
Speaking to news18, Maulana Khalid Rasheed Faranagi Mahali said, “The
official permission to play colours on Friday is till 12 pm, but
generally people play colours a little more than prescribed time. We
thought it will be best if all mosques, especially those in mixed
population areas, can just push their Friday prayer timings by just half
an hour, in order to avoid any kind of unwanted situation.”
With the festival of Holi falling on Friday, the police and
administration are on their toes to keep the celebrations peaceful,
especially in the areas which are prone to communal tensions. The Senior
Superintendent of Police, Muzaffarnagar, Anant Deo has urged people to
keep calm and to follow the path shown by Prophet Mohammad.
The Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, CM Yogi Adityanath has directed
police officials to ensure communication and consent with all the
communities so that no one should get a chance to raise questions over
intentions of the government or working of the administration. CM Yogi
Adityanath held a meeting via video conferencing in connection with
preparations for peaceful Holi celebrations with all the Divisional
Commissioners, IGs, DIGs and District Magistrates.
The CM also suggested that with the help of meetings of peace committees
in all the districts and dialogue with member of other communities,
peaceful Holi celebrations must be ensured at any cost.
The Director General of Police, Uttar Pradesh, Om Prakash Singh has
instructed that arrangements for the deployment of police force should
be monitored by senior police superintendents of police themselves.
Also, the police will keep an eye on the social media platforms and will
monitor for any kind of rumours that may be circulated.
