Vladikavkaz lacks mosques, the North-Ossetian Muftiate has reported, commenting on the petition for the transfer of the building where the planetarium is located, the Spiritual Administration of Muslims (SAM). Believers think that the religious building should be used for its intended purpose, but the solution of this issue should not go beyond the republic.
The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that the petition "Return the Persian Mosque of Vladikavkaz SAM of RNO-Alania" was posted on the "change.org" website and addressed the heads of North Ossetia and Chechnya, Vyacheslav Bitarov and Ramzan Kadyrov, accordingly.
The North-Ossetian SAM has expressed bewilderment over the petition.
According to Khadjimurat Gatsalov, a Mufti, Ossetia has are only 29 mosques for 200,000 Muslims.
The members of the community had the initiative to transform the Persian Mosque into the National Islamic Centre, Elbrus Dauev, a former Imam of the Vladikavkaz mosque, has reported.
There are no rational arguments for placing a planetarium in the mosque, but the transfer thereof to Muslims will not solve the problem of the deficit of places for praying, said Alikhan Khoranov, the editor-in-chief of the North-Ossetian portal "Hohag.com".
Rustam Kozarev, a parishioner of the Vladikavkaz mosque, believes it wrong to ask the Kadyrov to take part in defining the fate of the Persian Mosque. At the same time, he has noted that the news that the former Persian Mosque will become a planetarium angered Ossetian Muslims.
This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on February 9, 2019 at 06:53 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.
Kadyrov is one of addressees of petition on restoring Vladikavkaz mosque, Gatsalov is the only candidate for Mufti of North Ossetia, Mufti of North Ossetia writes a book "Russia and Islam: On Attack Spearhead".