AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi Photo Credit: IANS AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi

Key Highlights 'Those who die due to coronavirus are martyrs'

Asaduddin Owaisi had earlier lashed out at a section of media for giving the coronavirus crisis a “communal” angle

'All the people who attended the Nizamuddin Markaz event are cooperating with the government'

New Delhi: Hyderabad MP and AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Thursday said that those who die due to coronavirus are martyrs and said that their burial does not require kafan (shroud) or ghusl (cleansing).

One must immediately offer janazah and carry out the burial with a few people, he said.

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Earlier, the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) had issued a circular saying that all victims of COVID-19 irrespective of their religion should be cremated to stop the spread of infection.

The move was justified as a religious community leader had brought to his notice that burial grounds for Muslim or Christians are located in densely populated localities of Mumbai, thereby posing a high risk of contamination to their surrounding community or residential areas.

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However, the order was revised later. Now, people who insist on holding the burial would be allowed to do so provided the burial ground is big enough to rule out the possibility of spreading the virus in the neighbourhood.

Meanwhile, Owaisi lashed out at a section of media for giving the coronavirus crisis a “communal” angle due to Tablighi Jamaat Markaz calling it shameful.

Disease or plague has no religion

Speaking to ANI over phone Owaisi said, “I condemn that Islam is being blamed for the situation in the country now. Disease or plague has no religion, but some media outlets which blindly defend the government, BJP and Prime Minister have given coronavirus a religion.”

Defending the event at Markaz Nizamuddin, he said it was conducted from March 13 to March 15 and at that time according to the Health Minister coronavirus was not a health scare.

On March 19, the Prime Minister spoke about social distancing. Till then, all the major religious gatherings had continued in the famous temples, and now everything is being blamed on Nizamuddin Markaz, he said.

All the people who attended the Nizamuddin Markaz event are cooperating with the government, in Telangana as well as in Andhra Pradesh, he said.