Rains fail to dampen Delhi’s Eid spirit

NEW DELHI - Not letting the rains dampen their festive spirit, hundreds of Muslims offered prayers at the historic Jama Masjid Friday morning on the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr that marks the end of a month of fasting.

“The weather was just amazing with a cool breeze blowing. The only issue was that we had to sit on slush covered with plastic sheets while offering our prayers at Jama Masjid,” said 22-year-old Miraj Ahmed.

Fauzan Umar, a resident of Darya Ganj, was a little late for the prayers.

“I had planned to visit Jama Masjid in the morning to offer prayers but because of the rains, I had to postpone it by an hour,” said 23-year-old Umar.

The Jama Masjid, one of the seven Mughal Emporor Shahjehan built in 1656, looked spectacular as a large number of people, mostly clad in white, offered congregational Eid prayers. Prayers were also held in Idgah and small mosques across the capital.

At the end of the prayers, worshippers were seen embracing each other with greetings of ‘Eid mubarak’.

Majority of shops in the markets around Jama Masjid like Meena Bazaar, Sita Ram Bazaar and Darya Ganj were shut after remaining open for nearly 24 hours Friday.

“The shops do brisk business and are open the entire night before Eid and close only around six in the morning. Now the market will re-open in the evening,” said Umar.

And in Muslim households, delicacies like the sevaiyan (vermicelli pudding) were prepared to be savoured by family and friends.

“I got up early in the morning and started making sevaiyan as my kids just love it. After offering our prayers, our whole family sat down and relished it together,” said Shams Parveen, a 48-year-old homemaker from Azad Market in Old Delhi.

Police and security personnel were deployed at various prayer grounds (Idgahs) in the city. The Jama Masjid alone saw a deployment of around 500 policemen.

Mosques and neighbourhoods apart, social networking sites were also abuzz with activity since morning as people wished one another through messages, scraps and e-cards.