Faith leaders urge peaceful Milad procession in Hyderabad on Sept. 14

The Central Milad Procession, part of the the 1,500th year celebrations of the birth anniversary of Prophet Muhammed, will begin from the Mecca Masjid on September 14.

Office bearers of the Markazi Milad Juloos Committee requested organisations and individuals who intend to join the centralised procession to converge at the historic Mecca Masjid at 12 noon that day. The procession, they said, would begin soon after the Zohar (afternoon) congregational prayers around 1 p.m.

From the Mecca Masjid, the juloos will move along the determined route — towards Charminar, Gulzar Houz, Pathergatti, Madina Building, Nayapul, Salar Jung Museum, Darushifa, Purani Haveli, Mandi Mir Alam, Etebar Chowk, Kotla Alijah, Bibi Bazaar Crossroads and Moghulpura. It will culminate at Volta Hotel.

The committee urged participants of the processions to not indulge in any behaviour that may be construed as objectionable, and to be mindful of passersby.

Central Milad Juloos Committee office bearer Hafiz Muzaffar Hussain strongly discouraged youth from performing stunts on two-wheelers. “The Milad Juloos Committee has always appealed to not indulge in any sort of action that is against the sharia,” he said, adding that the use of “DJ”, a popular expression for multi-channel sound systems, during Milad celebrations was against Islamic law.

Committee officials, including Kamil Pasha, emphasised that the Milad procession be taken out with the reverence and respect for Prophet Muhammed. He encouraged participants to be on foot as much as possible.

In the run-up to the procession, differences appeared between certain sections and faith leaders over moving the procession from September 5, which corresponded to the 12^th of Rabi-ul-Awwal, the birth anniversary of Prophet Muhammed, to September 14. A faith leader from the city suggested that the youth should not be stopped from performing stunts. However, he recanted later and discouraged participants from being disruptive in any form, and affirmed that laws be followed.

The committee clarified that Milad-un-Nabi celebrations were held on 12^th of Rabi-ul-Awwal. It was only that the procession has been moved to September 14. They pointed out that Milad and the procession were two different things. They indicated that the procession date was moved forward as the Ganesh idol immersion procession was scheduled for that day, and also in the interest of upholding peace and communal harmony in the city.