The police have issued a warning of taking strict action against those offering namaz on the road on Eid-ul-Fitr. Meerut Police of Uttar Pradesh has ordered that FIR will be registered and immediate arrest will be made against those offering namaz on the road outside the Idgah. In addition, the process of cancelling the passports and driving licenses of the offenders will also be initiated. This step has been taken in view of the cases of many people going abroad and going on Umrah after offering namaz on the road last year.
SP City Ayush Vikram Singh said that Eid-ul-Fitr namaz will be offered only at the Idgah site and it has been advised to pray in mosques only. It is being requested that religious events will not be organized without permission at crowded public places. SSP Vipin Tada has instructed all police station in-charge officers to strictly prohibit offering namaz on the road. For this, monitoring will be done with drones and CCTV cameras.
Orders have been given to increase vigilance on the occasion of Eid and Alvida Juma in the four districts of Meerut range—Meerut, Hapur, Baghpat and Bulandshahr. Namaz will be offered in a total of 1370 mosques and 471 Idgahs in these districts. Along with this, 205 sensitive places have been identified where additional security arrangements have been made.
Union minister Jayant Chaudhary expressed his displeasure over this order and commented on the social media platform ‘X’. He wrote, “Policing towards Orwellian 1984”.
This step of the police has been taken with the aim of maintaining peace and order in the society, so that religious events can be conducted smoothly and in a safe environment.