DUSHANBE, January 26, 2012, Asia-Plus — Consideration of the case pitting Hoji Akbar Turajonzoda, a prominent Tajik religious figure, against Saidmukarram Abduqodirzoda, the head of the Council of Ulamo (a group of scholars and imams that provides interpretations of religious practice), is expected to begin in a court of Dushanbe’s Ismoili Somoni district today afternoon.
We will recall that Turajonzoda filed a defamation lawsuit against Abduqodirzoda on December 20.
Hoji Akbar Turajonzoda, and his brothers, Nouriddin and Muhammadjon, came under pressure from the authorities in early December.
On December 6, 2011, the Council of Ulamo accused the Turajonzoda brothers of commemorating the Ashura ceremony, which is commemorated by Shi’a Muslims as a day of mourning for the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of Muhammad.
The statement by the Council of Ulamo alleged that Nouriddin and Muhammadjon performed the Ashura ritual at the Muhammadiya Mosque on December 2.
“We are surprised that the ritual [of Ashura] was performed by members of the prominent religious family of Turajonzoda who claim to belong to the Hanafi school of Sunni Islam,” the statement said, adding “This ritual is entirely in contradiction to the Hanafi tradition…”
Responding to the statement, Hoji Akbar Turajonzoda said that none of his brothers had commemorated the Ashura ceremony. He also noted that the statement attributed to the Council of Ulamo was invalid because several members of the council had called him and insisted that they had not signed the document. According to Turajonzoda, the statement was part of an effort aimed at “discrediting his family in the eyes of President Emomali Rahmon.”
The authorities have suspended the functioning of the Muhammadiya Mosque in the Vahdat district for three months. Turajonzoda, told Asia-Plus that the Committee on Religious Affairs (CRA) under the Government of Tajikistan stated on December 9 that the functioning of the mosque has been suspended for celebration of the Ashura ceremony.
The Day of Ashura is on the 10th day of Muharram in the Islamic calendar and marks the climax of the Remembrance of Muharram.
It is commemorated by Shi’a Muslims as a day of mourning for the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of Muhammad at the Battle of Karbala on 10 Muharram in the year 61 AH (October 10, 680 AD). According to Sunni Muslim tradition, Muhammad fasted on this day and asked other people to fast.
In some Shi”a regions of Muslim countries such as Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Pakistan, Lebanon, and Bahrain, the Commemoration of Husayn ibn Ali has become a national holiday and most ethnic and religious communities participate in it. Even in predominantly Hindu country like India, Ashura (10th day in the month of Muharram) is a public holiday.
