Sindh Government on Wednesday announced that the prevalent novel coronavirus related lockdown in the province will be made stricter on account of Shab-e-Barat.
The government has asked the people to observe the day of religious reverence at home and offer prayers from the safety of their residential confines.The government spokesperson said that the people intending to make their way to the cemeteries will be stopped and asked to go back, no such action will be allowed which could gather a possible crowd at one place at one time.
Those that are found disobeying the protocol would have to deal with the legal consequences of their actions, said the spokesperson. “I want a strict lockdown in place as it happened during the first seven days of the shutdown,” Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah said while issuing directives for stricter implementation on closure orders in the province during consultative meeting of provincial cabinet members.
Citizens in the metropolis are not allowed to visit graveyards for ‘Shab-e-Barat’, the city’s police chief, Ghulam Nabi Memon, said on Wednesday.
Memon said that the city police had set up pickets at 200 points to ensure that the daily lockdown is observed. The people are requested not to pray in congregations in the mosques, he urged.
A complete lockdown will be enforced after 5pm — as it is every day, he had noted. As part of precautionary measures against the spread of novel coronavirus, Mayor Waseem Akhtar has announced that all the graveyards will remain closed on the eve of Shab-e-Barat .
Talking to journalists, Waseem Akhtar said that the cemeteries which come under the administrative control of Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) will remain shut tonight. He urged the people to follow the safety measures against the deadly virus and offer special prayers (Nawafil and Shabina) at their homes.
The mayor said that the decision has been taken in the best interest of the masses. On Shab-e-Barat, a large number of people visit graves of their dear ones while seeking God’s blessings for the departed souls.
On Tuesday, the Pakistan Ulema Council (PUC) said that the citizen should observe a ‘Shab-e-Tauba’ (night of forgiveness) instead of a ‘Shab-e-Barat’.
The council said that people should pray at home and that congregations in mosques will not be allowed to be held. “Offer all your prayers indoors,” the council had urged as Pakistan’s coronavirus tally shot past 4,000. Maulana Tahir Ashrafi reminded the people that getting into fights with police and authorities on the occasion was not permissible.
“Offer two RakatsNamaz and ask God for forgiveness and His mercy to get rid of this pandemic,” Ashrafi said.
