No Namaz On Rooftops: Congress MP from Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh, Imran Masood said on Thursday (March 27) that Muslims have been made second-class citizens. Speaking to CNN_News18, he said that the Uttar Pradesh government has no right to stop people in Sambhal from offering namaz on rooftops on the occasion of Eid or Alvida Juma. Sambhal Additional SP Shreesh Chandra said on Thursday that there is no ban on offering namaz in the traditional way. But gathering in large numbers on rooftops has been banned to prevent accidents.
After the peace committee meeting, he said that the Alvida Juma Namaaz on March 28 and the Eid Namaaz on March 31 will not be offered on the roads. On this statement, Masood said, "Roads are the property of the government, so they can stop (Namaz). They have a problem with offering Namaaz on the road for five minutes, but the road can be blocked for other purposes throughout the night. But the roofs of houses are not your property, why ban Namaaz there? You have made Muslims second class citizens in the country."
Masood also accused the government officials in Sambhal of being "mentally disturbed" and not respecting the sanctity of their post. On the occasion of Eid, BJP is trying to reach out to Muslims. They are distributing 'Saugat-e-Modi' kits to 32 lakh Muslim families through mosques across the country.
On this decision, Masood asked, "Is this a sougaat (gift)?" Masood asked, "You are stopping Muslims from offering namaaz on rooftops or roads. If there has to be a gift, then give the Muslims the gift of security, education, employment and cancellation of the Waqf Amendment Bill. Why are you making Muslims beggars? Are Muslims begging from you?"
What did the officer say?
Talking to journalists on preparations for Juma (Friday) farewell namaz, the ASP said that people should offer namaz peacefully. To ensure this, adequate number of police force has been deployed under the sector and zone.
He said that the issue of some people offering namaz on the roofs was raised in the peace committee meeting on Wednesday. The officer said that those people had asked whether they could offer namaz in a non-traditional way on the surrounding roofs or not. On which it was clarified that they should not gather on the roofs, as this can lead to an accident.
Chandra said that similarly, in view of the possibility of an accident due to offering namaz on the road, they have been prohibited from offering namaz there (on the road). The ASP said that it is being ensured that the namaz is performed safely in the mosques and Eidgahs where it has been traditionally offered.
