Lucknow/Varanasi/Meerut/Bareilly, Jun 29 (PTI) Eid-ul-Adha or Bakrid was celebrated all over Uttar Pradesh on Thursday with people thronging mosques and eidgah to offer prayers on the occasion.
People from all walks of life took part in the prayers and greeted each other on the occasion. Later, they took part in the ceremonial ‘Qurbani’ and visited friends’ and relatives’ houses to extend greetings.
In the state capital Lucknow, namaz was offered at Tile Wali Masjid, Aishbagh Eidgah and Bada Imambara, among other places. Similarly prayers were offered in all the districts of the state with people observing it with religious fervour.
Maulana Khalid Rashid Firangi Maheli, head imam of Lucknow Eidgah, said people offered namaz in huge numbers and prayed to the almighty for the peace and prosperity of the country.
“We have also urged the people not to share any video or photo goats being sacrificed on Bakrid to avoid any disruption of social harmony,” he said. Additional DCP (West) CN Sinha said three-tier security arrangements were made at the eidgah. Adequate amount of police force, including Rapid Action Force and Provincial Armed Constabulary, were deployed to ensure that no untoward incident took place, he said.
Meanwhile, Imam Mohammad Wasid Raza of Ulfat Baby Masjid in Lucknow said people were asked to keep their home, neighbourhood and city clean.
Imam of Bade Idgah Kashi Vidyapeeth Mufti Shamim Ahmad Al Hussaini likened the country to a bouquet with different types of fruits and flowers and said prayers were offered to keep the Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb (composite culture) alive. Greetings were also extended to the Prime Minister and Chief Minister, he said.
In Varanasi, Muslims offered prayers in large numbers. Religious heads at a mosque near Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapeeth appealed to celebrate the festival with mutual brotherhood with a special emphasis on cleanliness.
In Bareilly, devotees gathered in all small and big mosques and eidgahs early morning. The main namaz in Bareilly was offered at the Eidgah in Bakarganj, which was led by Qazi-e-Hindustan Mufti Asjad Raza Qadri.
In Meerut, too, devotees gathered in huge numbers in mosques to offer namaz despite rains in the city.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and other leaders took to Twitter to greet people on the occasion. “UPCM@myogiadityanth has extended hearty greetings and best wishes to the people of the state on the occasion of Eid-ul-Adha. The Chief Minister said that the festival of Eid-ul-Adha inspires everyone to live together and maintain social harmony,” the Chief Minister’s Office tweeted in Hindi.
Samajwadi Party president and former chief minister Akhilesh Yadav, BSP president Mayawati also extended their greetings on the social media platform.
The state government had made elaborate arrangements for the festival, including for cleanliness and uninterrupted power supply.
On Wednesday, Special Director General of police (law and order) Prashant Kumar said that prayers will be offered at more than 33,340 mosques across the state. Of these, 2,213 were identified as sensitive places for which 2,416 peace committee meetings were held, he said. PTI COR SAB AW SNS SKY
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