A day ahead: Ramazan starts in Fata and 10 K-P districts

Provincial minister lashes out at Mufti Popalzai for ‘dividing the country over religious matters’

PESHAWAR: Like previous years, this time around also the whole of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) and some districts of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) province observed the first of Ramazan on Saturday -- a day ahead of the country -- following Mufti Shahabuddin Popalzai’s announcement that the crescent moon had been sighted.

However, Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee Chairman Mufti Muneeb-ur-Rehman had ruled out moon-sighting on Friday, making it clear that the holy month of Ramazan would start from Sunday (today) in Pakistan.

All the seven agencies of Fata -- Khyber, Kurram, Orakzai, Mohmand, Bajaur, North Waziristan and South Waziristan -- observed the first day of Ramazan on Saturday.



People from 10 out of 25 districts of the province -- Peshawar, Mardan, Charsadda, Swabi, Nowshera, Karak, Lakki Marwat, Bannu, Hangu and Kohat -- also kept fasts.

Mufti Popalzai, the head of Masjid Qasim Ali Khan’s informal moon-sighting committee, enraged, if not all, most of the people with his unofficial announcement. His followers supported him for announcing the crescent sighting after what they called proper verification of the testimonies.

Popalzai announced at 11am that he had received 13 evidences of moon-sighting from Peshawar and Swabi. After ‘proper’ verification, the testimonies were termed valid and the first of Ramazan, for Popalzai’s supporters, fell on May 27.



“Popalzai has divided the nation into two and he should be tackled with an iron hand,” said Rehmat Khan, a resident of Hayatbaad, who did not fast on Popalzai’s announcement.

Khan told The Express Tribune that the moon controversy arose every year, but the governments – at the Centre and in the province – never did anything to resolve it. He stressed the need for proper consultations and negotiations between Popalzai and the central committee to resolve the issue.

Zeeshan Ahmad, a resident of Peshawar, said he was compelled to fast on Popalzai’s announcement as many in his locality were fasting, making it awkward for him not to.



“We were confused till midnight whether to fast or not. We face such panic every year. The federal and provincial governments have made moon-sighting a joke,” he added.

The residents of Malakand, Swat, Lower Dir, Upper Dir, Shangla, Chitral and Buner follow the central committee to observe religious rituals like Ramazan and Eid.

People in all seven districts of Malakand informed The Express Tribune that no one was fasting in their areas. None of the clerics had announced the start of Ramazan ahead of the central committee’s announcement, they added.



Similarly, Mansehra’s local Aftab Hussain said that the Hazara Division of K-P, comprising six districts Haripur, Battagram, Kohistan, Haripur and Abbotabad, does not follow Popalzai.

Rehmat Shah, a Tank district resident, said people from Tank and D I Khan did not fast on Saturday and would commence Ramazan from Sunday (today).

K-P Minister for Religious Affairs Habibur Rehman told The Express Tribune that Popalzai’s committee had no constitutional authority to make announcements about Ramazan and Eid.

“Since no proper legislation is in place related to the moon-sighting committee which is a federal subject, the provincial government cannot take any action against Popalzai,” said Rehman, adding that Popalzai kept the zonal committee out of the loop and announced Ramazan late night “which is beyond understanding”.

Moreover, he said the federal government had been saying for the last couple of years that it would introduce a proper legislation regarding the moon-sighting committee, but it had not happened as yet and “the nation is divided over observing their religious rituals”.