Zakir Naik's IRF in HC against its immediate ban

Istanbul: Mosques in Turkey reopened on Friday for mass prayers after more than two months as the government further eased strict restrictions to stop the spread of the new coronavirus.

Turkey has been shifting since May to a "new normal" by easing lockdown measures and opening shopping malls, barbershops and hair salons.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said many other sites -- restaurants and cafes as well as libraries, parks and beaches -- will reopen from Monday.

Hundreds of worshippers wearing protective masks performed mass prayers outside Istanbul's historic Blue Mosque for the first time since mosques were shut down in March.

In the Ottoman-era Fatih mosque, worshippers prayed both inside and outside, with the municipality handing out disinfectants and disposable carpets.

"I have waited a lot for this, I have prayed a lot. I can say it's like a new birth, thanks to God, he has brought us back here," he said.

Another worshipper, Asum Tekif, 50, said: "It has a been a long time... we missed the mosques."

Turkey, a country of 83 million, has so far recorded 4,489 coronavirus-related deaths and 162,120 confirmed cases.

Prayers in Hagia Sophia

Muslim clerics on Friday recited prayers in the Hagia Sophia, the world famous Istanbul landmark which is now a museum after serving as a church and a mosque.

The prayers were held to celebrate the anniversary of the conquest of Constantinople, today's Istanbul, by the Ottomans in 1453.

"It is very important to commemorate the 567th anniversary of the conquest ... through prayers in the Hagia Sophia," said President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who attended the ceremony via videoconference.

The stunning edifice was first built as a church in the sixth century under the Byzantine Empire as the centrepiece of its capital Constantinople.

After the Ottoman conquest, it was converted into a mosque before being turned into a museum during the rule of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of modern Turkey, in the 1930s.

But there have been hints about reconverting the Hagia Sophia into a mosque. Last year, Erdogan himself mooted the possibility of turning Hagia Sofia museum into a mosque.

Such calls have sparked anger among Christians and raised tensions with neighbouring Greece.

In 2015, a Muslim cleric recited the Koran in the Hagia Sophia for the first time in 85 years to mark the opening of an exhibition.

After Friday prayers at the Blue Mosque, a small group of Muslim worshippers shouted: "Let the chains break and let the Hagia Sophia open".

The group was later dispersed by the police who stopped them from protesting near Hagia Sophia that sits immediately opposite the Blue Mosque.

Kasaragod, Jun 10: Indian Union Muslim League leader Metro Muhammad Haji passed away at a private hospital in Kozhikode today. He was 70.

He was a well known social and political activist in Kasaragod district. He has served in the social, cultural, philanthropic and educational fields.

He was the Executive Committee Member of the Muslim League. He also served as the Kerala State Vice President of the Sunni Youth Union, and President of the Kanhangad Samyukta Jamaat.

He is survived by his wife Zuhra and children Mujeeb, Jaleel, Shameem, Khaleel, Kabeer, Suhaila and Jusaila.

New Delhi, May 29: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has imposed a monetary penalty of Rs 1.2 crore on Karnataka Bank Limited for non-compliance of asset classification, divergence and provisioning norms.

"The penalty has been imposed in exercise of powers vested in RBI under the provisions of Section 47 A (1) (c) read with Section 46 (4) (i) of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949. 

This action is based on the deficiencies in regulatory compliance and is not intended to pronounce upon the validity of any transaction or agreement entered into by the bank with its customers," the central bank said in a statement on Thursday.

According to the central bank, the statutory inspection of the bank with reference to its financial position as on March 31, 2017, and as on March 31, 2018, and the Risk Assessment Reports (RAR) pertaining thereto revealed, inter-alia, non-compliance with the directions issued by RBI.

Earlier, a notice was issued to the bank advising it to show cause as to why penalty should not be imposed on it for non-compliance with the directions.

After considering the bank's reply to the notice, oral submissions made in the personal hearing and examination of additional submissions, RBI concluded that the charges of non-compliance with RBI directions warranted imposition of monetary penalty, according to a release.

This action is based on the deficiencies in regulatory compliance and is not intended to pronounce upon the validity of any transaction or agreement entered into by the bank with its customers.