LUCKNOW, March 18 -- With the month of Ramzan in its last leg and Eid-ul-Fitr just three to four days away, clerics have warned people not to fall for any propaganda and advised them against wearing black armbands while offering Eid namaz. Clerics from both Shia and Sunni communities said Eid is a religious festival that should be celebrated in accordance with Sharia, and that any form of protest during Eid prayers is unjustified.

Following the recent attack on Iran by the United States and Israel, the killing of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei and the death of 160 schoolgirls in Iran, some reports suggested that people had been urged to wear black armbands during Eid prayers as a mark of protest.

Maulana Khalid Rasheed Farangi...