Religious fervour and spirit of brotherhood marked the ‘Youm-e-Ashoora,’ the 10th day of the month of Muharram on Friday. Special prayers were organised across the city to mark the occasion while youngsters distributed food and refreshments.
The highlight was the Bibi-ka-Alam procession taken out from Bibi-ka-Alawa to Chaderghat. The ‘alam’ was carried on caparisoned elephant ‘Rajani’. Members of the Shia community, who followed the procession, flagellated themselves with sharp objects to the cries of ‘Ya Hussain’ in remembrance of the martyrdom of Imam Hussain, the grandson of the Prophet, in the battle of Karbala in Iraq centuries ago.
The Bibi-ka-Alam is believed to contain a holy relic and the practice of installing the Alam is a 435-year-old tradition dating back to the Quli Qutb Shahi period. The procession passed through Yakutpura, Alijah Kotla, Charminar, Panjesha, Mir Alam Mandi, Darulshifa before culminating at Chaderghat.
Wakf Board Chairman Ghulam Afzal Biyabani, Secunderabad MP Anjan Kumar Yadav, BJP leader Baddam Bal Reddy, Hyderabad Police Commissioner Anurag Sharma, Mayor Majid Hussain, GHMC Commissioner Somesh Kumar and others offered ‘dhattis’ during the procession. The city has about 2,00,000 Shias, the second largest population of the community in India after Lucknow.
