PESHAWAR: The moon-sighting controversy that rears its head nearly every year emerged again on Saturday after the Qasim Ali Khan Mosque accepted the testimony of several witnesses who claimed to have sighted the moon.

Consequently, Eidul Fitr will be observed in parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Fata today (Sunday).

Despite the absence of both, Mufti Shahabuddin Popalzai and his deputy Khairul Bashar, Mufti Azhadullah, Mufti Jalaluddin and Maulana Asim Sami recorded the testimonies of nearly 50 witnesses at the Qasim Ali Khan Mosque on Saturday night.

Qasim Ali Khan Mosque declares Eid after receiving around 50 testimonies; Muslims in Europe, Middle East and Southeast Asia to observe Eid on Sunday

There was a massive crowd of locals and mediapersons, and witnesses thronged the mosque in such large numbers that they had to be split into groups.

As a result, all roads leading mosque were closed to traffic.

Meanwhile, Mufti Popalzai, who was thought to have ‘disappeared’ ahead of the all-important moon-sighting ritual, reportedly flew to Dubai on June 22. According to his ticket, which was also circulating on social media, the cleric is due to return on Aug 2, meaning he won’t be celebrating Eid at home this year.

There were also reports of witnesses claiming to have sighted the Eid moon in other districts as well: by the time this report was filed, the moon had been sighted in Kurram Agency, Landi Kotal in Khyber Agency, Orakzai Agency, North Waziristan, Swabi, Charsadda, Mardan, Bannu, Karak and Swabi. In Charssada alone, nearly 60 witnesses testified to having seen the Shawal crescent.

Earlier in the day, there were rumours that plainclothes officials had been spotted lurking around the Qasim Ali Khan Mosque on Saturday. Since the mysterious disappearance of Mufti Popalzai, there were fears that the move was aimed at preventing people from gathering at the mosque to record their testimonies.

However, as evening fell and the crowd of mediapersons and witnesses swelled, such fears were quelled.

The announcement comes as an embarrassment to the Central Ruet-i-Hilal committee, which was scheduled to hold its meeting, chaired by Mufti Muneebur Rehman, in Peshawar today (Sunday).

The federal moon-sighting committee is often left red-faced by the clerics of the Qasim Ali Khan Mosque when the latter announces Eid celebrations in KP and Fata one day ahead of the rest of the country, and this year will be no exception. Only Malakand and Swat, which traditionally observe Eid along with the rest of country, have not announced Eid celebrations for today.Talking to Dawn, Mufti Muneebur Rehman confirmed that the Ruet-i-Hilal committee would meet today (Sunday) in Peshawar, but refused to comment when asked about the announcement from the Qasim Ali Khan Mosque.

Interestingly, while most electronic media did not cover the testimonies being offered at the Qasim Ali Khan Mosque, reporters updated the information via their social media accounts, where it was picked up and circulated widely.

Rest of the world

Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Indonesia and Britain will also celebrate Eidul Fitr today (Sunday) after the Shawal moon was sighted there.

The crescent was also sighted in Afghanistan, Palestine, Egypt, Bahrain and Kuwait on Saturday evening, marking the end of the holy month of Ramazan.

Several other countries, including Jordan, Malaysia and Brunei, will also be celebrating Eid today.

Astronomer Khalid Al-Zaaq, a member of the Arab Union for Astronomy and Space Sciences, confirmed via his Twitter account that “Eid [in Saudi Arabia] begins Sunday astronomically”.

Despite its dispute with Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt, Qatar confirmed it will also be celebrating Eidul Fitr today after the crescent moon was sighted on Saturday evening.

The Indonesian government officially announced that this year’s Idul Fitri, as is called in the country, will be observed today (Sunday) following a confirmation meeting held at the religious affairs ministry on Saturday evening.

In a press conference, Indonesian Religious Affairs Minister Lukman Hakim Saifuddin said that all of the six sworn observers reached the same conclusion and, consequently, Indonesians would offer Eid prayers on Sunday.

London Central Mosque near Regent’s Park announced on its website that it too would celebrate Eidul Fitr on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Oman’s Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs announced that Sunday will be the last day of Ramazan and Monday will be the first day of Eidul Fitr after failing to sight the new moon in Muscat.

Published in Dawn, June 25th, 2017