- State must not become hostage to interest groups
The first wave of coronavirus came from Taftan. The second from the Talblighi Jamaat gathering in Raiwind. If the clerics are allowed to persuade the public that the best way to get rid of the coronavirus is to throng the mosques and continue doing so throughout the Ramazan, not even the richest countries of the world, with the best health facilities would be able to cope with the horrendous consequences.
On Monday, the National Command and Operation Center (NCOC) assigned the Interior Ministry the task of formulating guidelines for Ramzan in consultation with the ulema. The next day, without listening to the government’s views two groups of ulema, one in Islamabad and the other in Karachi, announced their Ramzan policy. At the first meeting they decided that apart from the five daily prayers, Friday and Taraweeh congregations will also continue uninterrupted. One of the participants warned that any closure of the mosques, or shutting down of Friday oe Taraweeh prayers would be unacceptable. Similar views were expressed at the ulema’s gathering in Karachi . The ulema advised the sick and elderly persons to offer prayers at home and handed over the task of implementing social distancing in tens of thousands of mosques to the government
Pakistan came into existence due the efforts of the All-India Muslim League led by the Quaid-e-Azam. Both the party and its leader were moderate Muslims. The demand for a separate country was vehemently opposed by some of the best known ulema and their allies, the Ahrar. In his speech before the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan on 11 August 1947, the father of the nation put the clerics in their place by telling the people “You may belong to any religion or caste or creed, that has nothing to do with the business of the State.”
It is the business of the state to save millions of Pakistanis from the onslaught of the coronavirus. Saudi Arabia and Jordan have already disallowed joint public prayers during Ramzan. Pakistan too needs to follow suit to safeguard the lives of millions of its citizens.
