London Mayor wishes Ramadan Mubarak

Ansar Ahmed Ullah
Contributing Editor,Shottobani

London: The London Mayor, Sadiq Khan, in a conversation with Ansar Ahmed Ullah on 1 April, talked about his and the Greater London Authority’s (GLA) plans to observe the month of fasting.

To a question put to him about his plans, he started by saying, ‘I wish all a very Happy Ramadan, Ramadan Mubarak, Ramadan Kareem. This will be the first Ramadan since 2019. We’re able to mix and mingle with friends and family to have Iftars and feasts with friends and family, go to the mosque to do congregational prayers and Taraweeh, of course.’

The London Mayor said it is a really important month for Muslims highlighting Muslim’s duty to charity, compassion and generosity. He said that the last few years have been tough. So many have thought of having a good Ramadan, but it will be challenging because the time lag between dawn and sunset is very long. And many will struggle but the great thing about London is that our religion is not just tolerated, it is respected, celebrated and embraced by non-Muslims and so the GLA will be doing a number of iconic Iftars.

He announced that the first Iftar begins on Monday 4 April at the Tower of London with the Naz Legacy Foundation. There will be leaders from other religions, the Jewish faith chief rabbi, the Catholic faith, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Imam Mahmoud, from East London Mosque and many, many others, young people across London, and the GLA will be doing more Iftars during the month of Ramadan to share a religion with others.

The month will end with a fantastic celebration in Trafalgar Square, the most famous square in the world. The GLA with the Muslim community will be celebrating either on the square. He added, ‘And it’s a wonderful thing but here in London, you know, we’re free to practice our religion. And many, many non-Muslims understand about Ramadan and fasting, which is fantastic.’

To an open invitation to the historical Brick Lane Mosque situated in Banglatown, he said, ‘I know the mosque very well. It’s a mosque that’s got a really rich history. You’ll remember when the first migrants arrived from Bangladesh, a mass numbers, it was their generosity and foresightedness of our elders who although they had low paid jobs, they put money aside to hire premises and then buy premises and then to have you know, classes and stuff and you know, it’s because of their wisdom and their foresightedness we know these fantastic mosques like Brick Lane Mosque, which is expanded hugely, but more than happy to attend for Iftar and prayer.’

The Brick Lane Mosque started as a church in 1743. And then it became the Great Synagogue and now, of course, it is the Brick Lane Mosque as it is known today, a testament to the different ethnic and religious, migrant groups that came and settled in the East End of London.

The Mayor added, ‘It’s a great story about the East End. One of the things we’re doing is we’ve moved City Hall to the East End of London as well. So yeah, you want to create a narrative about regenerating these London and the successive waves of migration in relation to Christianity, Judaism, Islam, and the different ethnic origins is fantastic.’

And finally, he finished with a message for Tower Hamlets Muslims, saying this year for many in Tower Hamlets was a very important anniversary with the creation of the state of Bangladesh. Many celebrations this year, celebrating, ‘We couldn’t do last year for obvious reasons. And I’ve been pleased to have been to many celebrations in relation to Bangladesh and the really important anniversary. This year. Of course, we should remember our brothers and sisters across the globe. Many won’t be as lucky as us to open iftars the way we can, whether they’re in Yemen, Ukraine, Syria, Afghanistan, or the Uighur Muslims in China. However, we have it in our thoughts and prayers, those less fortunate than ourselves, while being grateful for what we’ve been given, living in one of the richest cities in the world. One of the things about Ramadan is not just to fast and pray, but to perform Sadaqah and give Zakat to do good deeds. I’m sure that across London, across our country and across the globe, many Muslims will be performing good deeds in this holy month of Ramadan and I want to wish all a very Happy Ramadan, Ramadan Mubarak, Kareem and let’s make the most of this holy month.’