Permission to open mosques subject to change if SOPs not followed: Minister Religious Affairs
He was speaking exclusively to Dunya News program Nuqta e Nazar
LAHORE (Dunya News) - Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Noor-ul-Haq Qadri has said that Ulema have taken responsibility for ensuring health safety measures in mosques all over the country but in case SOPs are violated or coronavirus starts to spread quickly, this decision can be withdrawn.
Speaking exclusively to Dunya News program “Nuqta e Nazar”, Noor-ul-Haq Qadri said that the government will keep checks and balance on whether the provided SOPs are being followed or not, which will be the responsibility of the imam and administration of the mosque. He said that he himself would offer taraweeh prayer at home and advise advise his friends to do the same.
Religious Affairs Minister said that unlike other countries, there is complete freedom to preach Islam in Pakistan, but if the SOPs are not implemented or the coronavirus cases see a sudden surge, the decision to reopen mosques can be revised.
Noor-ul-Haq Qadri said that Prime Minister Imran Khan has informed the Ulema that he has taken this decision on their wish and now it is their responsibility to ensure that safety measures are followed and the spread of coronavirus in mosques is prevented.
Answering a question, he said that because Police, Rangers and other security agencies including FC are dealing with the coronavirus challenge all over the country, their deployment at every mosque is not possible, therefore, we considered it important to have the Ulema take this responsibility.
He said that there are hurdles to implementing many policies and wished that if only a fatwa had been issued at the level of the OIC, it would have served as a policy for all.
Noor-ul-Haq Qadri said that all of us have to fulfill our responsibilities; such difficult decisions can have both negative and positive outcomes. He said that even though the situation is not ideal, we made these decisions keeping the circumstances in view.
