Federal Minister for Science and Technology Chaudhry Fawad Hussain started efforts for resolving the issues over the consensus on the moon sighting mechanism in a wake of observe Eids and other religious days across the country on same day for promoting national harmony and integration.
Minister talked to media after attending a meeting of the Scientific Committee on Moon Sighting that “we had requested religious scholars from all schools of thought, especially Mufti Muneeb ur Rehman and Mufti Shahabuddin Popalzai, to brief them on scientific ways of moon sighting, but they said science had no worth for them.
Meeting of the Scientific Committee on Moon Sighting was attended by the Ministry of Science and Technology, Maulana Tahir Ashrafi of Pakistan Ulema Council and parliamentary committees on Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony.
Chaudhry Fawad Hussain said moon sighting without any controversy had become a dream in Pakistan since the establishment of Ruet-i-Hilal Committee.
He further said,”We started efforts in May last year to ensure celebration of Eid on the same day across the country as per promise of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government promise. We took experts on board and launched a website and mobile application for moon sighting.”
He informed that the ministry again invited the religious scholars to brief them that moon could be sighted through scientific ways but they did not pay any heed. He stressed “It is the duty of Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) to adopt scientific ways,”
The minister said the next consultative meeting on moon sighting would be held on April 2 and they would again invite Mufti Muneeb and Mufti Popalzai.
He said his ministry’s scientific committee had already informed the public that the moon for the holy month of Ramazan was expected to be sighted in the evening of April 24.
He claimed that the Ruet-i-Hilal Committee had announced wrong dates for the start of Islamic months of Rajab, Zilqad and Safar despite the fact that the moon was clearly visible at that time.
He said the Council of Islamic Ideology was also not playing its due role, citing that it had justified corporal punishment to the schoolchildren.