PESHAWAR, Oct 13: The central moon committee turned down at least nine credible evidences of moon sighting received from different parts of Peshawar in its Friday’s meeting held in Islamabad, it is learnt.

Members of the zonal moon committee told Dawn that they had verified the witnesses and sent them to the central committee.

The apex committee, headed by Mufti Muneeb-ur-Rehman, however, did not recognise their evidences as credible and announced Eid on Sunday that again paved ways for controversy and divided the nation into celebrating more than one Eid, they said.

The zonal committee meeting was held at the Auqaf Hall on Friday evening. Qari Roohullah Madani, district khateeb and member of the central Ruet-i-Hilal Committee, presided over the meeting where nine evidences of moon sighting were received.

The zonal committee, the members said, had also tried to get the consent of the provincial government when it received negative response from the central committee.

The provincial government, however, kept itself away from indulging in any controversy over the moon sighting, they added.

Qari Roohullah said: “We received nine evidences, including one of a woman, which were credible by all means. But the central committee refused to consider them as being reliable even after some of its members personally verified the information by contacting the witnesses.”

In addition to these, he said, the zonal committee also received other evidences from outside Peshawar.

He confirmed that after tepid response from the central moon body, the zonal committee members contacted high-ups in the provincial government who preferred to stay away from such matters.

He said the zonal committee was responsible for gathering evidences and after verifying forwarded them to the central committee.

An unofficial moon committee under the chairmanship of Mufti Shahab-ud-Din Popalzai on Friday announced that 17 evidences of moon sighting had been received from different parts of Peshawar and Eid would be celebrated on Saturday, a day earlier than the rest of the country.