Manohar Lal Khattar does u-turn on Namaz, assures action against those who disrupt

A day after saying that people should not offer Namaz at public places, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Monday took a u-turn on the issue. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader has now said that action will be taken against those who disrupt offering of Namaz.

Notably, during a press conference on Sunday, the Haryana Chief Minister had said that Namaz should be read in mosques and Idgahs and should not be offered at public spaces. Responding to questions on increase in number of incidents of disrupting Namaz in Gurgaon, Khattar said that it was the duty of the state to maintain law and order.

“It is our duty to maintain law and order. There has been an increase in offering Namaz in open. Namaz should be read in Mosques or Idgahs rather than public spaces,” the Haryana Chief Minister had said.

The statement by the BJP leader came just days after some right-wing organisations disrupted Friday Namaz at several places in Gurugram in Haryana. However, police presence at the spots prevented any violence from taking place.

Hindutva organisations have been trying to stop Friday prayers in Gurgaon over the last two weeks alleging that some people were trying to grab land in a bid to merge it with a mosque. There were disruptions to namaz at Wazirabad, Atul Kataria Chowk, Cyber Park, Bakhtawar Chowk and at South City, on Friday last.

Members of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Bajrang Dal, Hindu Kranti Dal, Gau Rakshak Dal and Shiv Sena arrived at the spots where people had assembled to offer Friday prayers.

Ritu Raj, a member of a Hindutva organisation, claimed that they organised a havan at Wazirabad to stop the Namaz.

They allegedly shouted slogans like Jai Shri Ram and Radhe Radhe to disrupt the Namaz.

(With PTI Inputs)