Ahead of Eid, Sikh community sanitises Delhi’s Jama Masjid

NEW DELHI: Ahead of Eid Al Fitr prayer, a number of members of Sikh community, ‘United Sikhs’ - a civil rights and humanitarian non-profit organisation - sanitised the Jama Masjid here on Sunday.

Speaking to media, Parminder Singh, one of the members, said, “It is not just Masjid but we are also cleaning Churches and temples.”

“We do not discriminate on religious grounds. When we walk with our holy book, Guru Granth Sahib, all the religions and their followers are the same for us. It is written in our holy book that we are all god’s creation. We are also sanitising the temples and churches. We have been working for the past 50-60 days,” Singh said.

Shahi Imam of Delhi’s Jama Masjid, Ahmed Shah Bukhari said this is the need of the hour in the nation that people take care of each other.

“The way people from Sikh community sanitised the Jama Masjid is the beauty of this nation. Amid the fight against the coronavirus, it is very important to help each other. I hope this beauty of the nation is maintained,” the Shahi Imam said. Eid-ul-fitr will be celebrated in India on Monday. Not just in Delhi but amid the fight against coronavirus, the pictures from across the nation have emerged where people were helping each other without any discrimination.

Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine in Jammu has been serving sehri and iftari during the holy month of Ramadan to around 500 Muslims who were quarantined at the Aashirwad Bhawan as it was converted into a quarantine centre.

Observe Eid with simplicity, help your neighbour and feed the hungry. This seems to be the message this Eid Al-fitr, at least in the national capital.

With assemblies prohibited and all religious places closed amid the nationwide lockdown due to Covid-19 pandemic, Delhiites are bracing for an Eid at home, and so do religious leaders appeal for.

Stating that Eid means happiness, Umer Ahmed Ilyasi, Chief Imam of the All India Imam Organization (AIIO), told IANS, “Happiness is possible only when others are happy as well. We are facing an unprecedented situation. I have appealed against buying new clothes and observing Eid by staying home.”