No lights, gatherings: Sindh marks Shab-e-Barat at home

Sindh marked Shab-e-Barat at home Wednesday night on the appeal of the government.

Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah and PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari issued separate video statements in which they appealed to people to stay home. CM Shah asked people to pray for forgiveness and that the world is rid of the coronavirus.

Sindh and the rest of the country is currently under lockdown to prevent the spread of the virus. It has already infected over 4,000 people in the country and claimed 60 lives.

The ulema had also asked people to stay home on Shab-e-Barat, a night typically marked by visiting mosques and graveyards.

But the government had shut down mosques and restricted access to graveyards in an attempt to keep people home. Some mosques had lights strung up but few were as decorated as they have been on past Shab-e-Barats.

Council of Islamic Ideology Chairman Qibla Ayaz and religious scholar Tahir Ashrafi both asked people to listen to the government’s guidelines and not come out. Instead, pray for Pakistan’s health, they urged.