8 months ago
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The State Waqf Board president of Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled Chhattisgarh connected Tuesday (September 23, 2025) appealed to Muslim younker to enactment distant from Garba functions during the ongoing Navratri festival. While the entreaty resonates with specified demands raised by right-wing leaders successful caller years, this is simply a uncommon lawsuit of the caput of a Waqf Board — a assemblage that works towards the absorption and regularisation of Waqf properties — voicing their support.
In a connection posted connected the Chhattisgarh Waqf Board’s authoritative WhatsApp group, its president Salim Raj wrote that entering Garba venues with “malicious intent” wounded the sentiments of the Hindu community, perchance disrupting societal harmony.
‘Not a creation event’
He wrote that Garba was not an mean creation lawsuit and was a devotional people creation performed to worship Goddess Durga, symbolising the rhythm of beingness and the goddess’s infinite power. “If the Muslim assemblage does not judge successful idol worship, they should enactment distant from spiritual events similar Garba,” the connection added.
According to the statement, Mr. Raj clarified that if immoderate Muslim member oregon sister wished to participate, respecting the attire and contented and obtaining support from the committee, determination would beryllium nary objection. However, it added, “entering Garba venues with malicious intent and attempting to make a disturbance wounded the sentiments of the Hindu community, perchance disrupting societal harmony”.
Appeal, not an order
In an enactment with The Hindu, Mr. Raj asserted that helium had issued the connection successful authoritative capableness and that it was an entreaty and not an order.
On the contents and the request to contented specified an appeal, helium said that determination had been controversies implicit the information of Muslims successful Pandals. “It’s a question of religion aft all, Garba is not simply a creation floor,” helium said.
Evokes criticism
The determination has drawn disapproval from immoderate successful the Muslim community. Salam Rizvi, a erstwhile Waqf chairman, said specified appeals drew invisible boundaries betwixt communities and that determination should ever beryllium an effort to promote antithetic communities to observe their festivals together. “Social harmony is affected erstwhile you region radical from 1 another,” helium said.
Mr. Rizvi besides underlined that portion Mr. Raj could contented specified an entreaty successful his idiosyncratic capacity, helium was overstepping his little arsenic the Waqf chairman.
