E-Paper
Gurugram namaz row: Muslim groups reject new proposed sites
The members of the Gurgaon Muslim Council said they were instead planning to offer namaz at all the 37 sites designated by the administration for namaz in 2018
A day after a Hindu and a Muslim group recommended to the district administration that the Friday namaz could be held at 12 mosques and six rented sites in the city to resolve the standoff, at least two Muslim groups on Tuesday said they did not agree with the proposal.
The members of the Gurgaon Muslim Council said they were instead planning to offer namaz at all the 37 sites designated by the administration for namaz in 2018.
On Monday, the district administration said it would examine the proposal received from the members of the Sanyukt Hindu Sangharsh Samiti and the Muslim Rashtriya Manch to resolve the long-pending row over Friday namaz in open public spaces in Gurugram.
Altaf Ahmad, spokesperson, Gurgaon Muslim Council, which has been representing the Muslim groups, however, alleged that their consent was not taken before submitting the proposal.
“We have requested the deputy commissioner to not consider their proposal as we do not agree with the terms offered by them. We will offer namaz at the 37 sites identified by the administration,” he said. In 2018, the administration designated 37 sites for Muslims to perform Friday namaz. However, in November first week, the number of sites was brought down to 20 after right-wing organisations protested against the prayers.
Ahmad said a press conference will be organised on the issue in Delhi on Wednesday.
“Despite repeated assurance from district administration that ‘Juma namaz’ in open public spaces will continue till the Muslim community gets a practical and viable alternative, there have been open threats by members of Sanyukt Hindu Sangharsh Samiti that they will disrupt all Juma namaaz in open spaces from December 10, onwards. No police or legal action has been taken against three people for their open and blatant threats and hate-mongering against the Muslim community,” said Ahmad.
The group last week filed police complaints against three right-wing activists for hurting the sentiments of the community.
Mufti Mohd Saleem, president of Jamiat-Ulama-i-Hind, Gurgaon division, said their repeated submissions to administration that the Muslim Rashtriya Manch did not represent the Muslim citizens of Gurugram, have been ignored. “How can a handful of maulvis claim to represent the 150-plus Maulvis who had been organizing peaceful and orderly Juma namaaz for years. There are approximately four lakh Muslims in Gurugram, and who has given the right to take a decision on their behalf that to reduce namaaz sites from 37 to zero. Why we were not informed regarding the meeting, it was an absolutely fraudulent and illegal meeting, held secretly and in a suspicious manner,” he said.
Haji Shehzad Khan, the chairman of Muslim Ekta Manch, another Muslim group, said the proposal is impractical and likely to create severe problems for the citizens. “We reject any and all such agreements done behind closed doors. We have requested Haryana chief minister and the district administration to constitute a representative ‘Aman Committee’, and resolve this matter in a mutually consultative way. We will continue to offer Juma namaaz at all the 37 sites agreed upon in 2018, and demand that the district administration ensures that law and order is maintained,” he said.
Khurshid Rajaka, coordinator of Gurugram Imam Sanghathan, and also the national convener of Muslim Rashtriya Manch, said he has been raising the issue since 2013, but this is the first time that people were trying to give it a “communal colour”. “I have been regularly raising the issues of Muslims in Gurugram. I had taken permission to offer Eid namaz in 2014, and since then I have been resolving related issues,” he said.
“For maintaining communal harmony, we have reduced the sites so that the present issue can be resolved. No one can use a public place for puja or namaz without the consent of locals or the authorities. Some Muslims are trying to give it a political angle . We have identified nine sites, and we are ready to pay the rent,” he said.
Members of Sanyukt Hindu Sangarsh Samiti and Gurugram Imam Sanghathan organised a press conference on Tuesday at PWD rest house and said that namaz in open spaces was not legally permissible, and that people should not be allowed to offer prayers in public places.
Kulbhushan Bhardwaj, legal advisor of Sanyukt Hindu Sangarsh Samiti, a Hindu umbrella body leading protests against namaz in open spaces, said, “We have even offered to pay rent for the sites which the administration will identify for Muslims to offer their prayers on Fridays. We are looking for a solution so that the issue can be resolved,” he said.
Yash Garg, deputy commissioner, Gurugram, said some members of the Muslim groups met him on Tuesday and handed over a letter. “We will review the proposals and will try to resolve this issue at the earliest. We will ensure that sentiments and interests of every community are safeguarded,” he said.
The Gurugram Police said they have not received any application or request that Muslims will offer namaz at 37 sites this Friday. “We will deploy the force according to the plan sent by the district administration,” said a senior police officer, asking not to be named.
Over the past three months, right-wing groups have tried to disrupt namaz being performed in open spaces in sectors 47, 12, 37 and Sirhaul Village. On November 5, Hindu groups organised a Govardhan Puja at the site in Sector 12A, where namaz used to be offered on Fridays. The protesters also performed a havan at a site designated for holding the Friday prayers in Sector 37, and also disrupted the namaz in Sirhaul Village, Sector 18.
