New Delhi, Nov 26: Mass prayers, warm embraces, feasting and family get-togethers marked Eid-ul-Fitr, the Islam's biggest festival marking the end of the fasting month of Ramzan, which was celebrated with bonhomie across the country today.
Mosques resounded with the divine uttering of "Allah-o-Akbar" as Muslims thronged mosques and Idgahs to offer mass prayers.
Men donning white-and-gold embroidered fez caps warmly embraced each other with the traditional "Id Mubarak" as women and children, attired in their best, exchanged gifts.
For the first time in 14 years, people living near the Line of Control in Jammu region celebrated the festival without the fear of Pakistani mortar shells and gunfire.
After the first-ever ceasefire between Indian and Pakistani armies since the outbreak of militancy in Jammu and Kashmir, no incident of firing or shelling was reported from anywhere.
In trouble-torn Parbhani area in Maharashtra, where 35 people were injured in a bomb blast in a mosque last week, curfew was relaxed to enable devotees to offer Namaz.
Over 5000 people assembled at the main Idgah square and offered prayers as state reserve police stood guard.
In Delhi, Shahi Imam of Fatehpuri, Maulana Mufti Mohammad Mukarram Ahmed, who led a congregation of a large number of Muslims, called for communal harmony and global peace.
Bureau Report