Hyderabad: As restrictions are slowly lifted for places of worship in the city, Muslims today slowly returned to their local mosques to perform Friday prayers.
In Telangana, all worship places located in COVID-19 green zones in the state are now allowed to fill one-third of their congregational capacity for Friday and obligatory prayers.
Today, at the major mosques including Bagh-e-Aam, Jama Masjid, Amera Masjid, Jama Masjid Hafiz Danka, Sunni Markaz, Gulbano Masjid Nampally, and several other mosques, Friday congregants came as early as 12:45 pm to 1 pm to fill a very limited space for Friday prayers.
There was no sermon in Urdu but rather a quick one in Arabic. The Imam mentioned that people only pray the two obligatory Jumma Farz and do the sunnah at home. The Imam also stressed in his announcements that people should maintain social distancing norms.
The major mosques of Hyderabad which usually saw 2,000 to 4,000 congregants during Friday prayers prior to the Ministry of Home Affairs order, now only contain 200 to 300 as per the strict standards operating procedure (SOP) set by the government.
Speaking to siasat.com after the conclusion of Jumaa prayer, the khateeb (mosque head) Dr. Zaheer Uddin Sufi of Jama Masjid Hafiz Danka explained that the mosque still practices first-come-first-serve for those who wishing to get limited to perform Friday prayers and other prayers.
“We placed safety precautions notice outside the mosque, displayed all the guidelines as per the World Health Organization (WHO), made social distancing markings and placed sanitisers inside the mosque, we are adjusting according to the government SOPs.”
Prior to today’s Friday prayers, congregants who came slightly late were politely turned away by police officers after the mosque had already filled its quota.
Dr Sufi said he was confident that authorities would soon allow for more congregants if the strict guidelines are being adhered to.
‘‘I think for the time being, the authorities want to see how mosques, in general, are following through with the SOP. Perhaps in time, they would allow us to open our space for more congregants to perform their prayers,” he added.
Mohammed Shanawaz, a resident of Moghalpura, lamented that he had missed his chance to perform Friday prayers today despite arriving at the mosque at 12.30pm, an hour before prayer time as the space was filled. “I hope the state government will reconsider allowing for more congregants within a mosque soon,” he said.
Friday prayers cancelled at the Makkah Masjid in Charminar
Hyderabad’s historic Makkah Masjid, which was opened only for five members including the Imam and mosque’s staff members from the start of the lockdown. There will be no Friday prayers for the public today as Makkah Masjid has advised people to pray at home because of the fear of the spreading the coronavirus.
The decision is a voluntary one, as there has been no official order from the state government to close places of worship. However, Hyderabad is witnessing a spike in coronavirus cases since the phased lockdown was lifted. On Thursday alone, Hyderabad registered 175 fresh cases of COVID-19.
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