HYDERABAD: President of Iran Hassan Rouhani, after the Friday prayers at the historic Mecca Masjid in Hyderabad, spoke at length about the global Mulsim unity that cut across sects. Over 1,000 people were in attendance for the prayer.
“It’s always this crowded every Friday noon prayer,” Sayed Akthar, a 21-year-old aspiring lawyer who stayed back listening to the Iranian President said. He said, “Whatever faith different communities in India have, they co-exist peacefully, and Iran appreciates that.”
“It’s important for Iran to have the Indian Muslims take the Iranian side,” opines Akthar. And his opinion is not without cause as India is home to over 10 per cent of the world’s Muslim population and has around 172 million Muslims according to 2011 census. “If they have us on their side, they will have greater legitimacy among the Muslim population of Arab countries,” he added.
Hussain Pasha, a 61-year-old man, after listening to the speech said, “Notice that the Iranian President visited the Mecca masjid and not the Jama Masjid in Delhi. This this is the only mosque where both Shias and Sunnis pray together. Even the main imam of the Kaaba mosque makes a pit stop here whenever possible.”
The security for the Iranian President included about 100 police constables from the Muslim community deployed in plain clothes among the crowd, this apart from members of the Rapid Action Force taking care of the mosque security. “I read about the visit a few days ago, but noticed there was no Ivanka Trump styled reception,” said Rasheed Mohammad, a resident of the locality.