‘Fear by Nature’: Indian Muslims reject Eid prayer centers | Issues of Islamophobia

Meerut, India The atmosphere was lively as a group of Muslim men gathered inside a small mosque to discuss preparations for Eid al-Adha prayers in the Meerut district of Uttar Pradesh state in India.

Rooftop fans grumble against the sweltering north Indian heat as about 50 worshipers listen to members of the mosque’s management committee in the village of Maliyana, about 80km (50 miles) from New Delhi, the country’s capital.

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The discussion is not about animals for sacrifice or charity, but the most pressing issue in front of them: roads, barriers, police permits, and how to actually pray for Eid on Thursday.

“Please do not gather outside the gates of the mosque,” advises one member. “When the mosque is full, wait for the next prayer time. Avoid arguments. Avoid videos. Do not respond when people provoke you.”

The men in the audience nod silently. Some go through WhatsApp groups where local police advice has already gone viral, urging Muslims to stop praying in public. Some of the audience look at each other worriedly.

Maliyana has a history. In May 1987, 72 Muslims were killed here by a Hindu mob and members of the Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC). After 36 years of trial, the district court in 2023 acquitted most of the accused for lack of sufficient evidence.

But the concerns that prompted the mosque committee and worshipers there to review their Eid plans are recent.

‘People are naturally afraid’

For more than a decade now, right-wing Hindu groups, emboldened by the election of Hindu nationalist Narendra Modi as India’s prime minister in 2014, have been criticizing Muslim donors. public prayers Friday is a celebration of transportation and safety concerns.

These groups, as well as politicians from Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), have disrupted namaz in streets, parks or empty spaces. Videos showing Muslims praying in open spaces have sparked outrage and an online campaign, prompting authorities, in some cases, to revoke permits issued by Muslims to pray in such places.

Last week, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), a prominent Hindu group allied with the BJP, called for a nationwide ban on street namaz, calling the practice “a show of force” by the community.

But Muslims argue that the crackdown on public prayers ignores the reality: many mosques and Eid prayer centers (called “Eidgahs”) cannot accommodate all worshipers for large Friday or Eid prayers, especially in crowded cities.

Ahead of Eid al-Adha, the most important question for Muslims is whether they should be allowed to pray in peace, free from scrutiny, controversy, or hostility, especially in BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh, a country as populous as neighboring Pakistan and home to about 39 million Muslims, more than the population of Saudi Arabia.

The BJP government in Uttar Pradesh, led since 2017 by Yogi Adityanath, a saffron-robed Hindu monk known by his name. vitriol against Muslimsthey have increased the violation of Islamic prayers on the streets and open spaces.

On May 18, Adityanath said Muslims should pray Eid al-Adha “in turns”.

“Love means the right thing, not wanting to take another path.” … (If they agree amicably, that’s fine; if not, we’ll take another route),” he wrote on X.

For the Muslims of Uttar Pradesh, the threat of Adityanath’s “alternative path” is not unknown.

“Last year, people were detained for praying in the open. In some places, houses were demolished and there were reports that driving licenses and passports were revoked. Seeing all this, people are naturally afraid,” a Muslim brother in Meerut told Al Jazeera, requesting anonymity for fear of reprisals.

Arif Malik, a shopkeeper in Aligarh district, about 130km (80 miles) from New Delhi, said that on Eid al-Adha last year, Muslims in his community “offered namaz for a few minutes in the open, but the police chased the worshipers away afterwards”.

“This Eid, families are telling people to avoid any gathering,” he told Al Jazeera.

‘Before, on the morning of Eid I was happy’

Muslims in Uttar Pradesh say the restrictions on Eid prayers are creating an atmosphere where even regular religious gatherings are seen as a security concern.

In several towns across the country, mosque committees are quietly reorganizing Eid arrangements. Others are reducing the size of churches. Others are asking worshipers to arrive in small groups or disperse immediately after the prayers. Community volunteers are tasked with making sure people don’t spill onto nearby roads, even for a short period of time.

“For many Muslims, the concern is not only about where the Eid prayers will be offered, but whether public gatherings as a religious group will be questioned,” said Mohammad Arif, 42, a member of the Meerut mosque committee who has been organizing Eid prayers for nearly two decades.

Arif said that mosque committees in several towns of Uttar Pradesh have held meetings on public management and ways to avoid conflict with the authorities.

“People are thinking a lot about appearance, mobility and where to put their prayer mats,” he said.

“We are afraid of making even the slightest mistake,” Arshad, a 33-year-old shopkeeper in Meerut who would only give his first name, told Al Jazeera.

In the past, Eid was a day of joy. Now there is yesterday’s argument. People are still watching if the police come or if someone takes a video and puts it online.”

For many Muslims, the emotional impact of such restrictions extends beyond the place of prayer.

“I’m afraid of being humiliated,” Numan Khan, a student at Aligarh Muslim University, India’s largest minority education institution, told Al Jazeera.

Even if nothing happens, people are afraid of being photographed, viewed on the Internet, or accused.

That fear has changed the behavior of the people in the festival area in subtle but visible ways.

Mosque committees have started contacting local police directly before Eid to avoid conflicts. Devotees are advised to guard the entrance, avoid overcrowding, and disperse worshipers after the prayers.

An imam in western Uttar Pradesh’s Saharanpur described the preparations as “damage control”.

“We spend more time discussing restrictions than discussing Eid itself,” he said. “Avoiding conflict has become a priority for us.”

An imam in the state capital of Lucknow said many prayers often overflowed into nearby streets for short periods of time due to lack of space, not as a sign of defiance.

“The prayer takes a few minutes. The roads are reopened immediately,” he told Al Jazeera. “This was not seen as a big issue in the past. Now it is being described as Muslims trying to take over the people’s land.”

The concern is not confined to Uttar Pradesh alone. Similar orders were passed in other BJP-ruled states, including West Bengal, and New Delhi, the national capital.

‘No one wants to argue’

In New Delhi’s Muslim community, residents report greater caution over visible religious celebrations.

Many Muslims who were asked about the issue said they are now thinking more about where they pray, how long they spend outside the mosque, and whether the meetings will cause complaints or anger online.

Outside New Delhi’s iconic Mughal-era Jama Masjid, traders preparing for a brisk Eid business said discussions about banning prayers have spread in tea stalls and shops.

“Nobody wants controversy,” Danish Khan, a 24-year-old clothing salesman, told Al Jazeera. People just want to pray and go home.

Despite their worries, preparations for Eid are continuing.

Markets are crowded till night. The tailors rush to finish what they are waiting for. Children drag parents for new shoes and candy. Inside the mosques, devotees wash carpets and prepare water for the crowds of worshipers expected on the morning of Eid.

But beneath the well-known traditions of the festival lies an unknown instability.

And it’s not just about Eid prayers. Traditionally animal sacrifices – goats, sheep or cows – during Eid al-Adha is also closely monitored and strictly controlled, with the threat of consequences if the animal’s blood or waste gets into public drains or streets.

All this is happening while Islamic religious beliefs dominate media debates and hate campaigns, as public demonstrations show. Muslim identity they are presented through the lens of security, law enforcement, or public concerns.

Several Muslims Al Jazeera spoke to said they would add to the recurring conflict – on freedom wearing a hijabeating halal food, making the azaan calls the loudspeaker to name a few – has created a sense of dread among the community.

“You start to feel like everything related to your name is under suspicion,” Faizan Ali, a developer in Noida, a suburb of New Delhi, told Al Jazeera. “Even praying is something you think about twice.”

Analysts say the debate over Muslim prayer marks a turning point in India, where the visibility of Muslims has become a point of contention.

“When a group begins to fear gathering in public to pray in a very important religious event, it shows a big change in how space is discussed and who feels free,” Nadeem Khan, a religious activist and researcher on religion and public space, told Al Jazeera.

Optional enforcement

Although the government implements measures to restrict Islamic festivals when necessary for traffic control and public order, it has not only allowed major Hindu religious festivals and traffic festivals, police protection, and civil society support.

Therefore, critics say that the difference and violation of namaz increases the opinion among Muslims about the observance of the law.

“What people are seeing is not only restrictions, but the arbitrary application of the law,” a New Delhi-based lawyer told Al Jazeera, declining to be identified for fear of government sanctions.

“The law protects the freedom of religion, according to the public order.” “But if one group is repeatedly scrutinized while others receive accommodation, it raises questions about equality before the law,” he added.

The issue of places where people pray for Muslims has become very difficult because prohibitions are followed by punishments.

Over the past decade, authorities in several BJP-ruled states have filed police charges against Muslims accused of offering prayers in unauthorized places. In some cases, authorities have also demolished buildings or properties allegedly associated with people accused of organizing public prayers.

Critics say this is excessive and discriminatory, and has turned a regular practice of worship into a criminal matter.

“Public space is not a beautiful space,” said Azhar Ahmad Khan, a sociologist in New Delhi. “It is also symbolic. The debate about namaz is about who feels entitled to be seen, to be accepted, and to live in contemporary India.”