Sarkarbari Central Jam-e-Mosque in Gazipur’s Painshail saves around Tk 250,000 after paying clerics from the charitable donations it receives during the month of Ramadan every year.
“We will have to go door to door this Ramadan to raise the funds to pay the salaries and Eid-ul-Fitr allowances of the khatib, imam and muezzin as the number of worshippers has dropped,” said Giasuddin Mokat, chairman of the mosques governing body.
During Ramadan, both fasting and acts of charity are incumbent upon Muslims who are able to do so in order to gain a clearer appreciation of human suffering. Mosques typically generate the bulk of their annual budget in Ramadan when donations peak.
This year, however, governments around the world, including Saudi Arabia, have imposed curbs on prayer congregations at mosques in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
Bangladesh followed suit on April 6 and restricted mosque congregations to a maximum of five devotees, including the mosque officials while allowing 10 people to participate in Jummah prayers.
The Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka has earned the moniker of the “city of mosques”. The country has more than 268,000 mosques, according to the Islamic Foundation.
As the lockdown pan outs, mosques are feeling the strain at a key fundraising time leaving their coffers running dry.
The payment of almost all mosque officials in Bangladesh is made through the money received as charity, which goes up manifold in the month of Ramadan. The money collected during Ramadan helps mosques shore up their finances for the rest of the year.
The picture is not different beyond Bangladesh. Considering the crisis, John Biggs, mayor of London’s Tower Hamlets Council, has given the mosques in the area a three-month rent amnesty.
Nevertheless, there have been reports indicating that some people are ignoring the lockdown rules and visiting mosques around the country at the risk of infection.
Moreover, some mosques have kept their gates open due to their financial struggles.
Last Friday, there were reports of sizeable congregations for the Jummah prayers at Bhogra, Bhawal Mirzapur, Painshail and some other places in Gazipur, which has happened with some regularity during the government-enforced shutdown.
According to some locals, the scenario is much the same in these mosques during the Taraweeh prayers. The committees of these mosques showed little initiative to stop the worshippers from congregating and in turn, limiting the risk of contagion.
“Many worshippers can’t pray by themselves and insist on praying together in congregations at mosques. They ignore the government orders and appear at the mosques. It feels bad to say no to them,” Md Abdul Bari Hawlader, imam of a mosque in Gazipur’s Dagri, said.
Khatib Mufti Hafizullah Kashemi of a mosque in Tongi’s Machhimpur told bdnews24.com that although they were trying their best to keep the number of worshippers for prayers within the prescribed limit, other mosques in neighbourhoods were not doing the same.
He believes the “sentiments, ignorance, negligence, and illiteracy” of worshippers are leading to such brazen defiance of the social and physical distancing norms during the lockdown.
The rules are being followed by most mosques in Dhaka, but the imams and other leaders of mosques have all reported that they are having a hard time keeping devotees away from mosques.
“It’s difficult to make people stop coming to mosques. And it’s hard to say how long we will be able to stop them if they keep pressuring us,” said Sultan Ahmed, chairman of Baitul Fazal Jam-e-Mosque in the capital’s Mohammadpur.
People's disregard for the lockdown curbs when it comes to praying in congregations at mosques is guided by the belief that nothing will happen to them at mosques, since these are the “places of Allah”, according to Gazipur’s Deputy Commissioner SM Tariqul Islam.
“But even people who have a better understanding of the religion than we do have kept their mosques closed,” he said.
Besides “illiteracy, ignorance and zealotry”, local politics are also playing a big role in keeping congregations going at some mosques, believes Tariqul.
Gazipur city's police chief Md Anwar Hossain also pointed to a lack of knowledge among the people about the dangers of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, for the worrying numbers congregating at mosques.
MONEY MATTERS
Mufti Kashemi, the Khatib of a mosque in Machhimpur, admitted that its financial prospects are directly linked to the presence of worshippers during Ramadan.
He and other clerics and mosque officials demanded government incentive packages for payment of salaries and Eid allowances of their staffers.
Giasuddin of Painshail even demanded that the restrictions be lifted.
Sultan Ahmed of Mohammadpur said the mosque committee leaders started discussions to find a way to pay up their clerics and officials.
“We also run an orphanage,” he noted.
Islamic Foundation Director General Anis Mahmud told bdnews24.com that it was yet to receive any formal demand for incentives. “We will consider it once we get the demands,” he said.
He claimed mosques were mostly complying with the government restrictions. “No other places are doing this,” he said.
“But you can’t stop gatherings at mosques by using the police. However, raising awareness and convincing people to follow the rules may work,” Anis added.
STRUGGLES MIRRORED IN LONDON TOO
The United Kingdom has over 1,700 mosques for more than 3.0 million Muslims, who account for 5 percent of the country’s population. But mosques along with churches and other places of worship have been closed since Mar 24 as the country continues to grapple with the pandemic.
The mosques run mainly on support from charitable groups and donations from individuals. Most of the mosques operate on rented places.
The mosques in London's Tower Hamlets were given some respite when Mayor Biggs waived their rents at the request of the local Council of Mosques.
Abdul Munim Jahedi, the treasurer of the Tower Hamlets Council of Mosques and trustee of East London Mosque, one of the largest mosques in Europe, said the limitations on prayers at mosques were a big blow to them.
“The mosques’ main source of income is donations from worshippers during Ramadan and Friday prayers,” he said.
Traditionally, mosques arrange Iftar meals for hundreds of people during the holy month. The East London Mosque typically collected donations worth around half a million pounds.
“The mosque is facing big trouble as the donations have stopped. Many have continued to support us online though,” Jahedi said.
He also said the Muslims have taken the restrictions positively, following directives from the Council of Mosques and the London Muslim Centre. “Saving lives is the most important thing now.”