Explained: How Tablighi Jamaat’s Delhi Congregation Became A Coronavirus Hotspot And Contributed To Its Spread In India

Coronavirus (Covid-19) cases have witnessed a sharp rise since Monday (30 March) in India with the total number rising to 1,657 as at 9 am on 1 April.

The pandemic virus has claimed the lives of 50 till now, while hundreds have been placed in isolation wards and a thousand are under self-quarantine. At least 150 persons have recovered.

Behind the sharp rise in Covid-19 cases in the country over the last few days are those who took part in a congregation at the Banglewali Markaz (Dargah) in Nizamuddin, Delhi. The Markaz is the headquarters of the Tablighi Jamaat.

The congregation took place in mid-March. But it now transpires that even as the people in India began to test positive for Coronavirus and the government was urging social distancing, the Banglewali Markaz was teeming with thousands of participants from across the country and the globe.

What is the Tablighi Jamaat? What is its origin?

The Tablighi Jamaat, an offshoot of the Deobandi movement, claims to be an apolitical organisation. It wants Muslims, particularly Sunnis, to return to orthodox Islam, practising their religion as it was done during Muhammad’s time.

The Tablighi Jamaat, which means the Society for Spreading Faith, originated in Mewat in Haryana in 1926. Muhammad Ilyas Kandhlawi (Muhammad Ilyas Ibn Muhammad Ismail), known popularly as Hazratji, launched the Jamaat after his second visit to Mecca.

The Tablighi Jamaat began to spread in South Asia in 1946 and during the 1970s and 1980s made inroads in Malaysia and Thailand, where it became popular among the working class.

The Tablighi Jamaat, as an organisation, does not seek donations and is not funded by anyone. Its members have to bear their own expenditures.

There is no formal registration process for this Jamaat and hence, the number of its followers are unknown. Its activities are coordinated through centres and headquarters called Markaz.

Tablighi Jamaat’s activities are supervised by its international headquarters, which is the Banglewali Markaz in Nizamuddin.

One of the activities of the Jamaat followers is Tafrigh-i-Waqt (sparing of time). As per this, members of individual jamaats travel to other markaz either within the country or outside to ask the followers to follow the religion in the orthodox way.

The visit extends from a few hours to a specified period of time. The markaz for the jamaat members to visit is picked by a draw of lots.

Why has a hue and cry been raised over a Malaysian Tablighi Jamaat congregation? Is it a vector for the spread of Covid-19?

A global Tablighi Jamaat event — Ijitma Asia — was held at the Seri Petaling mosque, Selangor in Malaysia from 28 February to 2 March, long after Coronavirus cases started to be reported from different countries.

About 16,000 Tablighi members from countries such as India, Pakistan, China, Indonesia, Thailand, Brunei, Nigeria, Canada, Singapore, Vietnam, Cambodia, and South Korea besides Malaysia took part in this event in Malaysia.

The event would not have taken place had there been no confusion in Malaysian politics. Then, Muhiyudding Yasin turned the tables against Mahathir bin Mohamad to become the Prime Minister.

Nearly half of the 2,766 cases in Malaysia can be traced back to the Ijitma Asia event. On 22 March, Malaysia said it was yet to trace 14,500 Malaysians who attended the Petaling mosque event.

Singapore, which is next door, had ordered its mosques shut as early as 12 March when two citizens tested positive for Coronavirus after attending Ijitma Asia.

Thus, the Malaysian event has become a hotspot for Coronavirus in South-East Asia and beyond, including India and Pakistan.

A few hundred of the participants at the Malaysia Ijitma Asia event have travelled to other parts of Asia, including India and Pakistan. They are reported to have infected people of other nations where they had gone for a visit or congregation.

The Banglewali Markaz event was in mid-March. On 13 March, the Ministry of Health said in a circular that “Coronavirus” was not an emergency. Why is the Tablighi Jamaat being blamed then?

This 13 March Health Ministry circular argument does not wash for two reasons. One, the Delhi Government issued an order banning gatherings of over 200 on 13 March. Two, the previous day it had ordered self-isolation of those who had visited countries affected by Covid-19.

On 16 March, the Health Ministry called for social distancing in view of the dangers posed by rising cases of Coronavirus in India.

Why did the Nizamuddin Markaz continue to play host to the Tablighis even as late as 23 March?

The Delhi Government too cut the size of gatherings to 50 the same day.

Moreover, an Indonesian Tablighi event similar to Ijitma Asia, scheduled to held in Sulawesi from 18 March to 22 March, was cancelled on fears that such a meeting could accelerate spread of Coronavirus.

If the Tablighi Jamaat leaders could cancel an event in Indonesia, which has the largest number of Muslims in the world, why did not they cancel it in India that was held a day or two ahead of it?

Why is the Nizamuddin Markaz event being blamed for spread of Coronavirus, especially in Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Karnataka, and a few others?

Over 1,200 persons from across the country are reported to have attended the mid-March Alami Mashwara. Many had stayed beyond the conclusion of the event.

These persons, who had come from as far as Kanyakumari, Guwahati and Kashmir, mingled with 280-odd foreigners from countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand.

Since they mingled with the potential Coronavirus-infected persons, they too got infected. For example, in Tamil Nadu, 100 persons, who tested positive for Covid-19 on 31 March, had attended the Tablighi congregation.

Six persons in Telangana who attended the Nizamuddin event have died. In Andhra Pradesh, 13 of the 17 who tested positive for Coronavirus on 31 March had travelled to Delhi for the Markaz event. Kerala, Karnataka, and, even, New Delhi have reported a considerable number of Coronavirus cases traced to the Aalami Mashwara event.

Overall, at least 10 persons have died and hundreds have been affected (the count is increasing every hour) by Coronavirus. Until the people who returned from the Banglewali Markaz event and tested positive for Coronavirus, the number of those infected in India was less than 1,000.

Even in the locality around the Markaz, 200 have developed symptoms for Coronavirus and the entire area has been cordoned off and sanitised. How did this happen?

Isn’t it a fact that the Nizamuddin Banglewali Markaz, like the Petaling event in Malaysia, is proving to be the main vector in spreading the pandemic virus?

A report says that Tablighi Jamaat members could be the bigger Coronavirus threat in South Asia, what with Pakistan too suffering from its impact following a similar event at Lahore from 11-15 March.

Tablighi Jamaat preachers from Indonesia, Thailand, and other countries, including China, who are currently in India, have tested positive for Coronavirus in States such as Tamil Nadu and Telangana.

The Nizamuddin Banglewali Markaz authorities say that they had written to police on 27 March seeking to send back those who have been held back in the premises. What about that?

This is misleading because on 23 March, the Nizamuddin police station chief had asked the Banglewali Markaz authorities to clear off the worship place, where over a thousand people were still staying.

The Markaz authorities sought to speak to the Nizamuddin sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) and the police official shared the SDM’s number. Did the Tablighi authorities contact the SDM as they assured the police official? What actually happened at the meeting with the SDM on 26 March?

Moreover, Delhi police say that no permission was sought for the Aalami Mashwara. How can an event be held without police permission?

Aren’t Tablighi Jamaat followers visiting India often? How many of them have come so far this year? Why has the government not taken any action against them, if they were preaching during their visits?

Yes, they are visiting often. About 2,100 from abroad have visited India for Tablighi activities this year. The Home Ministry has found violation of rules by the foreigners who visited the Banglewali Markaz. Indian rules bar foreigners, on visitors visa, from indulging in preaching, speaking at religious places or distributing religious literature.

Not just Tablighi Jamaat, even Christian evangelists have been found violating the visa regulations. However, these activities of foreigners on visitors visa have to be brought to the notice of the police or Home Ministry officials. Until this happens it is difficult to identify those violating the visa regulations.

Tablighi Jamaat preachers have been specifically told not to indulge in preaching. On 21 March, the Home Ministry wrote to all States to identify all 824 foreign members of the Tablighi Jamaat in various parts of the country to screen and isolate them.

The Home Ministry has now decided to blacklist these Tablighis. They all now could be deported.

Are people of a particular religion or community being held responsible for the spread of Covid-19 by pointing fingers at the Nizamuddin congregation?

It is a wrong argument to say that a particular religion or community is being held responsible. The Tablighi Jamaat event has been identified as a main vector for the spread of Coronavirus in India.

In such circumstances, identifying the event will help alert people and their contacts. If Tablighi Jamaat has nothing to hide, why are many of their foreign preachers being hid at various worship places?

Eight foreigners were kept in hiding at a Delhi mosque, eight were found in Bijnor, Lucknow and Maharashtra.

Moreover, some of those who attended the Nizamuddin congregation have switched off their phones, especially in Tamil Nadu. In these circumstances, it is essential to identify those who have gone to the Alaami Mashwara or been in contact with them.

Also, the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protests, especially by the minorities, continued in Shaheen Bagh and other parts of the country until 18 March. No one blamed these protests, though there is every chance that one of those who attended these could have been Coronavirus positive.

Right now, the Tablighi Jamaat congregation is raising concern every passing minute with many testing positive. The head of the Markaz has gone into hiding and it required National Security Advisor Ajit Doval to visite the worship place.