The date for Eid-ul-Fitr was announced in Pakistan by Ruet-i-Hilal Research Council. According to the council, chances of Eid-ul-Fitr falling on April 21, Friday were very low as the new crescent will be born at 9:13 am on April 20 and its age will be of less than 10 hours.
Eid-ul-Fitr is expected to be celebrated on Saturday, April 22nd, 2023. Secretary General Khalid Ijaz Mufti said that the Ruet body meeting is set to convene on Thursday 20th April, in order to sight the Shawwal moon. It is unlikely for the Shawwal moon to be sighted on April 21, evening, he said. Mufti added that if the crescent is sighted on Thursday evening, then Eid-ul-Fitr will be celebrated on Friday 21st.
Mufti believes Eid-ul-Fitr will be celebrated after completing 30 days of Ramzan. “The birth of the moon is expected to occur on Thursday, April 20, at 9:13 am Pakistan Standard Time (PST), he said, adding that the duration of the moon should be more than 19 hours and its age will be less than 10 hours in Pakistan. Even if the sky is clear that day [April 20], the moon wouldn’t be spotted,” Mutfi Khalid added.
Read more: Stampede at Charsadda free flour distribution kills man
The announcement of the Ramzan moon this year came quite late at night. This year Ramzan has been marred by soaring food inflation. People were forced to stop buying fruits and vegetables for Iftar due to skyrocketing prices.
People complained and protested against the high prices of food items in Ramazan. On the other hand, several people lost their lives due to a stampede during the flour distribution drive across Pakistan organized by the government.
A man was killed and four others injured during a stampede at a free flour distribution point in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Charsadda district. In a similar incident, in Faisalabad, a stampede at a flour distribution point claimed the life of a citizen after the government announced the distribution of free flour sacks among deserving families