Punjab: This Eid, no hugs, no prayers at mosques

AMRITSAR: The ‘Eid Mubaraks’ will be without the customary embrace this year. The Covid-19 pandemic is going to play a dampener in celebrations — usually marked by prayers, feasts and get-togethers — in the border belt of Punjab.
Community members are expected to refrain from attending the community Namaz and instead offer prayers at home on Monday.
The imam of historical Khairuddin Mosque, Hamid Hussain Qasmi, told TOI that this would be the first time for him when prayers wouldn’t be offered in mosques on Eid. “But it is a calamity and everyone has to take precautions to contain the spread of virus,” he said. Qasmi has appealed to community members not to gather in mosques.
There are over 100 mosques in the border districts of Punjab, including Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Gurdaspur, Pathankot and Ferozpur.
Anwar ul Huda, member of Anjuman Falah Ul Muslimeen, said there was no Eid market in Amritsar this year and people also did not buy new clothes or gifts.
Tariq Ahmad, spokesperson of Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama’at, which is headquartered at Qadian in Gurdaspur district, said Eid was going to be different for everyone around the world. “Our community is abiding by the rules set by central and state governments and is practising social distancing,” he said. He too said there would be no community prayer at mosques as people are asked to offer prayers at home.
The historical Masjid-e-Aqsa in Qadian is locked.
Krishan Ahmad, a resident of Qadian, said “Shopkeepers complain they couldn’t get new stock for Eid shopping due to lockdown.” He said everyone in Qadian will miss the embrace. “We will also miss hosting people from neighbouring villages for prayers and feast.”