Hyderabad: Muslims across the Telangana State celebrated Eid-ul-Adha, the festival of sacrifice, (Bakrid) with religious fervour and devotion on Wednesday.
The festival, celebrated by Muslims across the globe, symbolizes sacrifice, absolute devotion to God Almighty and compassion for the poor. Attired in their best, Muslims brethren offered special prayers at the Idgahs and mosques in the morning and exchanged greetings. In the Capital city, thousands of Muslims offered prayers at Mir Alam Idgah, Mecca Masjid, Masab Tank and other places.
The City Police Commissioner visited various places in the old city and supervised the arrangements for the festival. Police made elaborate security arrangements in the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad. The festival was also celebrated at many places like Nizamabad, Bodhan, Warangal Kazipet, , Karimnagar, Peddapalli, Adilabad, Nirmal, Bhainsa, Zaheerabad, Khammam, Mahbubabad, Nalgonda, Tandur, Vikarabad and other places.
Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and Governor of the two Telugu States E.S.L. Narasimha Rao greeted the people on the occasion. Tens of thousands offered prayers in Hyderabad and 30 other districts of Telangana State.
Delivering speeches before namaz, the Imams exhorted Muslims to imbibe the spirit of sacrifice and follow Prophet Ibrahim, who offered to sacrifice his son Prophet Ismail to please Allah. The Almighty replaced Ismail with a sheep just as Ibrahim was about to sacrifice him. Also known as Bakr-id or Eid-e-Qurban, it is the second major festival of Muslims. The meat of the sacrificed animal is divided equally into three parts. The person making the sacrifice keeps one part for his family, while the other two parts are distributed among relatives and the poor.
The Old city wore a festive look while butchers coming from other districts did brisk business. Hectic activity was seen in many parts of the city as the sale of goats continued throughout the night. In response to the appeal made by a group of religious scholars, Muslims preferred sacrificing goats, sheep and cattle rather than cows. The ‘imams’ or priests offered special ‘dua’ (supplication) for the people of flood-hit Kerala. Jamaat-e-Islami and some other organisations also collected donations for flood relief.
The biggest congregation in Hyderabad was held at the historic Mir Alam Eidgah where over one lakh people offered prayers. Maulana Mohammed Rizwan Qureshi led the prayers.
The historic Mecca Masjid, Madannapet Eidgah, Hockey Ground Masab Tank and Military Ground Mehdipatnam also witnessed big congregations. Prayers were also held at hundreds of mosques in the city.
Police made tight security arrangements especially in the communally sensitive old city of Hyderabad to prevent any untoward incident. Special check-posts were set up at different places to prevent illegal transport of cattle.
