'Faith is beyond attire': MP Nusrat Jahan refuses to toe the line of clerics

Agencies

June 30, 2019

Kolkata, Jun 30: Newly elected MP and actor Nusrat Jahan has said no one should comment on what she chooses to wear as "faith is beyond any attire", refusing to toe the line of hardline Muslim clerics who criticised her for wearing vermilion and mangalsutra.

A section of Deoband-based clerics reportedly also issued a 'fatwa' (diktat) against the Trinamool Congress lawmaker. The first-time MP from West Bengal's Basirhat came to Parliament on June 25 wearing vermilion and sporting a 'mangalsutra', and said 'Vande Matram' after taking oath.

Jahan, 29, married businessman Nikhil Jain at a ceremony in Turkey earlier in June and took oath a few days later.

The clerics claimed Jahan disrespected Islam by marrying into the Jain religion and called her attire "un-Islamic".

"Muslims can only marry Muslims and are only allowed to bend before Allah. Islam has no place for Vande Matram, mangalsutra and vermilion and they are against the religion," claimed Mufti Asad Kasami of Jamia Shaikh-ul Hind.

Responding to the criticism, Jahan on Saturday night tweeted, "Paying heed or reacting to comments made by hardliners of any religion only breeds hatred and violence, and history bears testimony to that."

Affirming that she represents an "inclusive India...Which is beyond the barriers of caste, Creed and religion," she said, ".....I still remain a Muslim....And none should comment on what I choose to wear.....Faith is beyond attire."

She commented on her tweet that faith "is more about believing and practicing the invaluable doctrines of religion."

Many people have come in Jahan's support, including women leaders of the ruling BJP at the Centre.

Comments

yes... your absolutely right Mr. Abdulla

She is digging her own grave by following parth of Iblees. None can stop her if she does so coz there is no compulsion or force in Islam. Islam or Muslims will not lose anything if she selects hell fire. May Allah bless her with right way of thinking.

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Faithful begin Hajj pilgrimage under strict Covid-19 measures

Agencies

July 29,2020

Dubai, Jul 29: Muslim pilgrims on Wednesday begin the annual Haj, downsized this year as the Saudi hosts strive to prevent a coronavirus outbreak during the five-day pilgrimage.

The Haj, one of the five pillars of Islam and a must for able-bodied Muslims at least once in their lifetime, is usually one of the world's largest religious gatherings.

But this year only up to 10,000 people already residing in the Kingdom will participate in the ritual, a tiny fraction of the 2.5 million pilgrims from around the world that attended last year.

"There are no security-related concerns in this pilgrimage, but (downsizing) is to protect pilgrims from the danger of the pandemic," said Khalid bin Qarar Al Harbi, Saudi Arabia's director of public security.

Pilgrims will be required to wear masks and observe social distancing during a series of religious rites that are completed over five days in the holy city of Makkah and its surroundings in western Saudi Arabia.

Those selected to take part in the Haj were subject to temperature checks and placed in quarantine as they began trickling into Makkah at the weekend.

State media showed health workers sanitising their luggage, and some pilgrims reported being given electronic wristbands to allow authorities to monitor their whereabouts.

Workers, clutching brooms and disinfectant, were seen cleaning the area around the Kaaba, the structure at the centre of the Grand Mosque draped in gold-embroidered cloth towards which Muslims around the world pray.

Haj authorities have cordoned off the Holy Kaaba this year, saying pilgrims will not be allowed to touch it, to limit the chances of infection.

They also reported setting up multiple health facilities, mobile clinics and ambulances to cater to the pilgrims.

Saudi authorities said only around 1,000 pilgrims residing in the Kingdom would be permitted for the Haj. Some 70 per cent of the pilgrims are foreigners residing in the Kingdom, while the rest will be Saudi citizens, authorities said.

All worshippers were required to be tested for coronavirus before arriving in the holy city of Makkah and will also have to quarantine after the pilgrimage as the number of cases in the Kingdom nears 270,000.

They were given elaborate amenity kits that include sterilised pebbles for a stoning ritual, disinfectants, masks, a prayer rug and the Ihram, a seamless white garment worn by pilgrims, according to a Haj ministry programme document.

"I did not expect, among millions of Muslims, to be blessed with approval," Emirati pilgrim Abdullah Al Kathiri said in a video released by the Saudi media ministry.

"It is an indescribable feeling... especially since it is my first pilgrimage."

The Haj ministry said non-Saudi residents of the Kingdom from around 160 countries competed in the online selection process but it did not say how many people applied.

Despite the pandemic, many pilgrims consider it safer to participate in this year's ritual without the usual colossal crowds cramming into tiny religious sites, which make it a logistical nightmare and a health hazard.

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