Gangtok: November 8, 2011

Muslims in Gangtok celebrated Eid-ul-Zuha on Monday with gaiety and the spirit of sacrifice. Around ten to twenty goats and sheep were sacrificed in the city on the occasion. The community offered prayers in the morning at various mosques in Muslim pockets across the city and adjoining east district and then got down to sacrificing goats and sheep. The meat was then used to prepare a variety of dishes.

“Muslim households generally prepare a variety of sumptuous dishes like sheer korma, payas and mutton biryani. Unlike Eid-ul-Fitr which is celebrated at the end of Ramzan, Bakr-Eid is not just sweet dishes”, said a Muslim head.

According to tradition, after cutting a goat or a sheep, every Muslim divides the meat into three parts. One part goes to the poor, the second to relatives and the third remains with the family. This is done to show the spirit of remembering the poor and also to include relatives in the celebration. India has over 160 million Muslims, the third largest population of Muslims in the world after Indonesia and Pakistan.

 

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