GURUGRAM: A local association of gurdwaras on Wednesday announced it would open its doors to allow namaz with the number of sites for Friday prayers having shrunk by almost half in the city because of protests by right-wing outfits and some local residents over the past few weeks.
Gurdwara Singh Sabha Committee of Gurugram, which has five gurdwaras affiliated to it — at Sadar Bazar sabzi mandi, Sector 39 (near Medanta), Sector 46, Jacobpura and Model Town — said it will approach the administration to seek permission to allow Muslims to offer namaz in small groups without compromising on Covid protocols.
“It was disturbing to learn about the opposition to namaz in open areas. The doors of our gurdwaras are always open to everyone. If Muslims are facing problems in finding a place for Friday prayers, they are welcome to offer namaz in gurdwaras,” said Harry Sindhu from the committee. He said that while each gurdwara has the capacity to accommodate thousands of people at a time, they have been allowing only small groups due to Covid norms.
Sher Dil Singh, another member of the committee, said a gurdwara is “guru ka darbar” where anyone can come and pray. “If our Muslim brothers are facing issues, we will offer them our premises at gurdwaras and their halls,” Singh said, adding that they will welcome whoever wants to offer prayers, irrespective of their faith and beliefs.
Last Friday, the number of open sites where namaz is offered in the city came down from 37 to 20, which effectively reduced to 19 after protests at Sirhaul against use of public places for prayers.
Welcoming the initiative of the gurdwara association, Khurshid Rajaka, chairman of Muslim Rashtriya Manch, said it will help establish peace and harmony. “Everyone should take inspiration from the Sikh community and help people from other faiths conduct their religious activities without any animosity,” Rajaka said, adding that there have been instances in the past too where Muslims have offered namaz at religious places of other communities.
Altaf Ahmad, co-founder of Gurugram Muslim Council and Gurugram Nagrik Ekta Manch, said he and other Muslims in the city appreciated the “gracious offer” from Gurdwara Singh Sabha Committee. “This is a true example of brotherhood where people from multiple faiths have come forward to defeat divisive forces who have been spreading hatred and communal disharmony in the city over the past two 2 months,” said Ahmad. A day earlier, a Hindu man had offered a small commercial space to the Muslim community for namaz.
“I am confident that more and more people across communities will come forward to offer their private properties where Muslims can pray every Friday for 30 minutes,” said Ahmad, adding that he hoped the Haryana government will take cognisance and allocate land to Muslims at the earliest for mosques so they can “pray with dignity”.
