Amid the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic, a good number of Muslims in India skipped Eid shopping and donated the money to charity. Large gatherings for Eid prayers were also avoided to curb the spread of the pandemic.
With lockdown still in effect in several states, The usual buzz around the festivities remained absent as lockdown is still in effect in in several states of India and volunteers are in the hospital helping people with oxygen cylinders, medicines or Eid rations.
“Eid doesn’t mean flaunting clothes and fine cuisine. It is a festival to share joy, but since we are reeling under the assault of a pandemic, this Eid should be an occasion to help the needy,” Iqbal Memon Officer, president of All India Memon Jamaat Federation, tod The Times of India.
In an audio message that has now gone viral, Officer appealed to people not to spend the money buying clothes but to pay the fees of poor children, buy oxygen cylinders and pay the hospital bills of people struggling with Covid-19.
“We are passing through one of the toughest times in our country’s history. Lockdown has already made the poor poorer. Eid should bring a smile to the faces of those who have lost businesses or jobs,” said Haji Mudassar Patel, vice-chairman of City Congress, who spent his Ramadan distributing packets and ration to the poor. He, along with former ministers Baba Siddiqui and Arif Naseem Khan, urged Muslims to help the needy than shopping for Eid.
Travel agent Imran Alvi said that his family had not shopped for Eid either. They did not find meaning in celebrations due to deaths in the family or extended family. They were working to help the fight against COVID-19 in the state.
