LUCKNOW: Namaz of Eid-ul-Fitr was completed peacefully in 30,000 mosques and 40,000 Eidgahs across Uttar Pradesh on Monday amid state-imposed curbs prohibiting the offering of Namaz on roads and public properties. Special vigilance was deployed in Sambhal, Aligarh, Lucknow, and Meerut districts; Namazis who thronged the Jama Masjid of Varanasi were forced to offer Namaz on the stairs of the mosque.
Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav alleged that the state government deliberately stopped his fleet to delay his arrival at the Lucknow Eidgah.
“They kept my fleet held up for half an hour. When I asked for reasons behind the delay, the officer had no reply. Is it a dictatorship or some emergency? Today, the country’s constitution is at the greatest risk,” said Akhilesh.
Deputy CM Brajesh Pathak also reached Lucknow Eidgah and greet the Namazis.
UP DGP Prashant Kumar said that the Namaz of Eid-ul-Fitr was offered peacefully in all the districts of the state abiding with guidelines issued by the administration.
“People did not offer Namaz at public places following the advice of the clerics and also the norms laid out by the state administration amid tight security arrangements,” said the DGP.
In Sambhal, around a dozen companies of security forces were deployed. Over 1300 CCTV cameras were installed around mosques and the disputed Shahi Jama Masjid. The district administration kept a close vigil on the situation through drones.
Meanwhile, SP MP from Sambhal, Zia-ur-Rehman Barq also reached Shahi Jama Masjid to offer namaz. On the ban on holding Namaz on road, the MP said that there should not be double standards in the country.
“On one hand, roads are barricaded to celebrate festivals, on the other, there is a huge problem if Namaz is offered for just 10 minutes on roads,” said the SP MP.
In Moradabad, a few young Namazis lodged their protest over intense checking while on way to Eidgah. They said that due to the delay, they could not offer the Namaz, and that the Eidgah management organised Namaz again so that they could offer it.
In Meerut, two Muslim groups clashed after the namaz at Siwalkhas town and they engaged in heavy stone pelting and firing at each other leaving many injured. The clashes could be stopped after the police intervention, said the local sources.
According to SP, Meerut Dehat, Rakesh Kumar Mishra said that five persons were held in connection with the trouble.
In Saharanpur, Namazis were seen waving the flag of Palestine saying Muslims were suffering a lot in that nation. They also raised slogans against the Congress MP Imran Masood, saying that while Muslims were suffering in Palestine, the MP was busy celebrating Holi and playing with colours.
Meanwhile, the Namazis were seen wearing black band at number of places in protests against the impending Waqf Amendment Bill.
