Call to re-open mosques before Ramazan

LAHORE: Islami Jamhoori Ittehad (IJI) president and Markazi Jamiat Ahle Hadith (MJAH) vice-president Allama Zubair Ahmad Zaheer has demanded the government review the closure of mosques in view of the advent of the holy month of Ramazan, and evolve some SOP to allow the believers to pray inside as long as coronavirus threat was not removed. Addressing a meeting to review the preparations for the month of Ramazan here Sunday, he said that the government should keep in mind that mosques are the house of The Almighty and the doors of blessings for the believers, which must not be closed at a time when the humanity badly needed the blessings of Almighty to avert the coronavirus spread.

He said after the government’s planning to open industries and businesses on the assurances of effective measures for coronavirus prevention, they had no justification to keep mosques closed as Ramazan was round the corner.

He said prayer leaders were ready to assure of taking all preventive measures to be prescribed by the government in consultation with religious scholars. He warned that lockdown had pushed entire nation into economic crises, while the closure of mosques was also creating unrest among the masses.

He said absence of worshippers caused serious drop of donations in the mosques, and demanded the government waive off utility bills to mosques for next three months and provide rations relief package to mosques and seminaries.