Pakistan

Government plans top Ruet-e-Hilal body meeting in Peshawar

Likely to hold meetings with the ulema of Peshawar including Masjid Qasim Khan’s cleric

Obaid Abbasi May 23, 2016

Likely to hold meetings with the ulema of Peshawar including Masjid Qasim Khan’s cleric. PHOTO: REUTERS

ISLAMABAD: In order to stave off the possibility of conflicting announcements over the start of the fasting month and the eventual celebration of Eidul Fitr, the religious affairs ministry is considering holding a meeting of the Central Ruet-e Hilal Committee in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) for moon sighting.

The conflict over the onset of Ramazan and Eid day usually begins in K-P and especially from Masjid Qasim Khan, where evidence of sighting of moon for Ramazan and Shawal often contradicts the findings of the Central Ruet-e Hilal Committee.

Legal status of Ruet-e-Hilal Committee questioned

Requesting anonymity, an official at the ministry told The Express Tribune that ministry is considering holding the committee’s meeting in Peshawar this year instead of Karachi.

“The objective is to develop consensus over the moon-sighting and Eid celebrations in the country and to avoid the issue of multiple Eids,” said the official. Sharing details, he said the ministry will hold meetings with the ulema of Peshawar including Masjid Qasim Khan’s cleric Mufti Shahabuddin Popalzai, who usually announces Ramazan a day prior to the announcement by the central committee.

In 2014, three Eids were celebrated in the country as the committee and religious scholars from the K-P failed to reach consensus on the moon-sighting issue.

The official said Religious Affairs Minister Sardar Muhammad Yousaf will call a meeting in the next couple of days and take a decision in this regard.

Chances of sighting Ramazan moon tomorrow extremely high: Met Department

Sources said the ministry believes that moon sighting and announcement of Ramazan and Eid is a technical issue besides being a religious obligation. However, they said the practice generates controversy every year due to the ego of some clerics.

“If the move succeeds then it will be the first time in the country’s history that a meeting of the central committee will be held in K-P,” said another ministry official.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 23^rd, 2016.