Hyderabad: Eid-ul-Adha, the festival of sacrifice, was celebrated with religious fervour and enthusiasm across Telangana and Andhra Pradesh on Wednesday.
Muslims in Hyderabad and in other towns of Telangana, and in the neighbouring Andhra Pradesh offered Eid prayers and sacrificed goats or cattle commemorating the great sacrifice of Prophet Ibrahim.
Lakhs of Muslims offered prayers in Hyderabad, 30 other districts of Telangana and all 13 districts of Andhra Pradesh.
The day began with Muslims attired in their best, offering Eid prayers. At many places, Eid prayers were offered a few minutes after 'Namaz-e-Fajr' or the regular pre-sunrise prayers.
The 'imams' or priests offered special 'dua' (supplication) for the people of flood-hit Kerala. Jamaat-e-Islami and some other organisations also collected donations for flood relief.
The biggest congregation in Hyderabad was held at the historic Mir Alam Eidgah where over one lakh people offered prayers. Maulana Mohammed Rizwan Qureshi led the prayers.
The historic Mecca Masjid, Madannapet Eidgah, Hockey Ground Masab Tank and Military Ground Mehdipatnam also witnessed big congregations. Prayers were also held at hundreds of mosques in the city.
Police made tight security arrangements especially in the communally sensitive old city of Hyderabad to prevent any untoward incident. Special check-posts were set up at different places to prevent illegal transport of cattle.
On Tuesday, police had taken BJP MLA Raja Singh in preventive custody as he had threatened to stage a hunger strike at the police commissioner's office over what he called transport of cows.
Eid was also celebrated with gaiety in Nizamabad, Karimnagar, Nalgonda, Mahabubnagar, Adilabad, Warangal and other towns of Telangana.
In Andhra Pradesh, huge Eid congregations were seen in Vijayawada, Guntur, Kurnool, Kadapa, Anantapur and other major towns of the state.
Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, his Andhra Pradesh counterpart N. Chandrababu Naidu and the Governor of the two states E.S.L. Narasimhan, greeted people on Eid.
"Bakrid symbolizes sacrifice, absolute devotion to God and compassion for the poor. It also emphasises the principle of sharing. Let this spirit of charity and goodwill towards all be cherished and nourished," said Narasimhan.
"Bakrid is the festival of sacrifice and reminds everyone to follow the noble teachings of the Prophet and imbibe the spirit of sacrifice, compassion and tolerance for fellow beings," said Chandrasekhar Rao in his message.