Panaji: Members of the Muslim community requested the South Goa collector to deseal the Sunni Gulistan Masjid at Gogol Housing Board, Margao.Members of the community assembled outside the masjid on Monday in presence of police personnel, requesting the reopening of the mosque for prayers. They said that four days were left for Ramzan to begin, and that it was more than a week since the masjid was sealed.“Ramzan is important for us. If investigations are expedited and the masjid is opened, we can hold prayers,” he said. They said they were being denied hearing the ‘Azan’ and offering ‘namaz’ in the masjid.The South Goa administration sealed the masjid on Jan 31, following the daylight murder of its vice-president, Ali Khan, outside the mosque. Police said the murder stemmed from a dispute between two rival groups over donation money collected from marriages and events.The meeting scheduled at the collector’s office with representatives of the masjid on Monday was postponed to Tuesday.Curtorim MLA Aleixo Reginaldo interacted with members of the community who gathered outside the masjid, demanding its reopening. He told them not to demand its reopening in a hurry and let law take its own course.
