Mumbai: Lakhs of Muslims celebrated Eid-ul-Fitr, marking the end of the 30-day rigorous fasting during the holy month of Ramadan, with joy and religious fervour in Mumbai and rest of Maharashtra on Saturday.
The faithful, clad in their festival finery, congregated at the 600-plus mosques in the city and other parts of the state to offer the special Eid namaaz, in many areas braving heavy rains.
The biggest congregation was witnessed at the Jama Masjid, instead of the Azad Maidan, on account of rain fears. Large numbers of Muslims gathered on roads and housing complexes in pockets like Borivali, Kandivali, Malad, Jogeshwari, Andheri, Santacruz, Bandra, Mahim, Mazagaon, Colaba, Byculla, Kurla, Ghatkopar and Bhandup greeting each other Eid Mubarak.
While most sects celebrated Eid on Saturday, some others like the Dawoodi Bohra community celebrated it on Thursday.
Reports of Eid celebrations came in from Thane, Palghar, Raigad, Ratnagiri, Beed, Latur, Nashik, Aurangabad and other areas with significant Muslim populations in Maharashtra.
Maharashtra Governor C.V. Rao and Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and other leaders from different parties greeted the people on the occasion of Eid.
As Eid fell on a weekend, many people from cities like Mumbai, Thane and Pune grabbed the opportunity for quick two-day outing with their families at various beach and hill resorts in the state.