Some Muslims want body of man shifted out of Hindu graveyard
Body of Muslim was buried in shamshan ghat after six Muslim graveyards refused permission
Hyderabad: Some community members have demanded shifting of the remains of a Muslim man who was buried in a Hindu graveyard after custodians of six Muslim graveyards had denied permission citing lack of space. Many others want the body of Mohammed Khaja Miyan, 55, resident of Gandhamguda, Bandlaguda, who died of a cardiac arrest on May 22, to lie undisturbed, unless the family wants it shifted to a Muslim graveyard.
The Wakf Board has convened a meeting of the ulema and advocates to discuss the possibilities of exhumation in Sharia and the laws of the land. Meanwhile, the board has established a helpline desk to ensure hassle-free burial in Muslim graveyards, on phone number 79955 60136.
According to Khaja Miyan’s family members, after they were refused permission at six Muslim graveyards, two locals, Sandeep and Shekar, had arranged a place to bury the man in a shamshan ghat.
Moulana Syed Khaja Moiz Ashrafi said those who had provided land at a Hindu graveyard should be praised and thanked by the Muslim community. He demanded the Wakf Board to take legal and Sharia opinion in this regard besides taking stern action against custodians who refused the burial.
Social activist Dr Mukhtar Ahmed Fardeen appealed to home minister Mahmood Ali and Wakf chairman Board Mohammed Saleem to make arrangements for shifting the body.
Moulana Mohammed Abdur Raheem Khurram Jamai opined that if the Wakf Board has the authority it can exhume the dead body and rebury it in a Muslim graveyard, though the decision should be left to the legal heirs.
Social activist Mohammed Mansoor Ali urged people not to make it a communal issue. He said the body could be shifted only if the shamshan ghat custodian or the heirs of the deceased ask for it. He called for evolving comprehensive rules to govern and manage graveyards.
Moulana Mufti Mohammed Abdul Mughni Mazaheri of Madarsa Sabeel-ul-Falah has issued a fatwa stating that without a valid reason exhuming a body from the grave is not admissible. It can be done if the heirs want to do so with a valid reason or the owner of the land demands shifting of the remains.