Words- Imtiaz Ullah
Offering prayers at Mosque is very important for a follower of Islam but there are certain questions that pops up in my mind regarding offering Namaz at mosques during a Pandemic like Corona Virus outbreak. I am referring to what happened at Markaz Nizamuddin during Tablighi Jamaat.
Should people go to mosques during the Pandemic also ? Will it not pose a threat to the individual and society at large?
This photo was taken in Jama Masjid way before the Pandemic- this is how a mosque congregation looks like under normal circumstances.
Neither am I the authority nor a very religious person to comment but my observations are based on my personal perspective. You may agree or disagree.
For me religion is a means to leading a good life and it is never beyond humanity. I am also involved with various voluntary projects and honestly, when I perform or carry out an act that impacts the society, I never see the name of the person. For me all religions are the same and first we are Humans.
“Maybe it will be good for us to re-examine daily rituals that we follow while venturing out for offering prayers. This is not restricted to Muslims but to all the religions. The need of the hour is to support each other, find out means to sail through the pandemic and not to point fingers at each other.
As per Islamic rules and directives of the Prophet Mohammad (Pbuh), “if there’s any chance for any sick person to get affected by or a risk of death or fear of outbreak of any epidemic then people can avoid going to mosques“
Saudi Arabia decided to suspend congregational prayers in all mosques in the Kingdom, according to a report of the Arab News.
Our request and recommendation to our readers- stop public gatherings, refrain from going to religious places and pray from home.
Many Islamic countries have advised people to say prayers from Home and refrain from going to mosque, then what went wrong at Tablighi Jamaat, Markaz, Nizamuddin, Delhi, India. Let us delve into it.
Source- Google
An estimated 2,500 people belonging to several nationalities had assembled by March,10th at Markaz Nizamuddin.
Many reports said there was a scheduled congregation at the Markaz sometime between March 8 and 13, but there is no official confirmation.
As the number of confirmed Coronavirus cases in the country reached around 1,400 and still increasing, the gathering of preachers since early March at the building, known as the Markaz or International Headquarters of the Jamaat, has become what many call a ‘SuperSpreader’.
Source- Dainik Bhaskar
On Tuesday, news reports — from TV as well as online — started pouring in, the debates were slowly but surely getting a communal color, and blamed the Tablighi Jamaat congregation for risking many lives. But is it correct to do so? I am absolutely not the right person to comment but I strongly feel such religious gathering should not have taken place in the first place.
National Lockdown
On March 24, Tuesday, at 8 PM, the prime minister announced a 21-day nationwide lockdown and urged the people to stay at home or wherever they were.
The Tablighi Jamaat HQ said, ‘under such compelling circumstances there was no option for Markaz Nizamuddin but to accommodate the stranded visitors with prescribed medical precautions till such time that situation becomes conducive for their movement or arrangements are made by the authorities”. This is highly debatable.
Many people say this is politics and when the government has failed to prevent the corona virus outbreak in an efficient manner, they are now trying to shift focus to Nizamuddin. We are not here to discuss the veracity of this logic.
There are scores of fake news doing rounds now, please be mindful that all news that you hear may not be from the authenticated source and one must be smart enough to understand which is genuine versus fake. The need of the hour is to stand United and fight the demon named “COVID- 19” by staying united.
There were other instances also where large sections of people were at one place viz. Temples, Gurudwaras and most importantly the migrant labourers caught up at Anand Vihar Bus Terminal.
Observing from close quarters makes me ponder, “Did the government do a good job in implementing the Lockdown? Would it have been more imperative for the government to have given some more time to the people to make movement to their native places or any other necessary arrangements? This could have stopped the mass Exodus.
Well! That is a point of debate and the news channels are more equipped to carry on with such debates, but the common people like us want more action in the ground and we as a nation want the government to effectively control the increasing cases of pandemic and as responsible citizen of this country we should support the government in their steps to curb the menace. Hope humanity will sail through this and this shall pass. Till then Stay Safe and Don’t Travel.