- PTI looks for scapegoats
The government has taken the decision to allow congregational. gatherings in mosques, ignoring the advice by prominent doctors from all over the country. The danger of coronavirus contamination does not arise from the big mosques where the administration can enforce the required precautionary measure for photo ops. It comes from hundreds of other mosques in densely populated localities where overcrowding could lead to the violation of social distancing. All the more so when prayer leaders and mosque committee members are under the spell of clerics like Maulana Tariq Jameel and believe that the pandemic has been ordained by Allah as punishment for their sins and precautions like social distancing and repeated washing of hands are as useless as masks and ventilators as the only way to get rid of the curse is to seek forgiveness by thronging the mosques.
Federal Planning Minister Asad Umar has put all the onus on the people. According to him, people would be acting irresponsibly if they fail to take “precautions recommended by doctors”. When the Prime Minister did not listen to the doctors who advised him to follow Saudi Arabia and Turkey instead of allowing mass prayers in Ramzan, how could one expect the common man to follow the doctors instead of the clerics. When the action of an individual causes harm to society, it is the duty of the government to restrain him, if needed by force, instead of leaving it to him to take the decision.
Minister for Religious Affairs Pir Noor-ul-Haq Qadri puts all responsibility on the ulema. He has warned that the clerics would get all the blame in case of the failure to implement the SOPs. A prayer leader is mostly dependent for his livelihood on the people of the locality. He cannot go against them if they insist on being accommodated in the already crowded prayer hall even if this requires bypassing the social distancing precaution.
The government could very well have followed the example of important Muslim countries by putting curbs on big religious gatherings. It failed to take the decision out of political considerations. If the policy leads to any disaster, the government alone is liable to be held accountable.
