2,100 Foreigners Came To India In 2020 For Tablighi Activities: Home Ministry

The government on Tuesday said as many as 2100 foreigners visited India for Tablighi activities since January 1 and all of them first reported to its headquarters in Delhi's Nizamuddin, which has now apparently become a coronavirus hotspot.

The home ministry, in a statement, said that while approximately 824 of them, as on March 21, dispersed to different parts of the country, 216 of them were staying at Nizamuddin Markaz, where several of them tested COVID-19 positive.

It is estimated that from January 1 onwards, approximately 2,100 foreigners had visited India for Tabligh activities, the statement said.

Tablighi Jamaat workers, both foreigners as well Indians, indulge in preaching tours or Chilla across the country throughout the year.

Various nationals, particularly from Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Nepal, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Kyrgyzstan come for Tabligh activities.

All such foreign nationals normally report their arrival to the Tabligh Markaz at Banglewali Mosque in Hazrat Nizamuddin, the statement said.

From there, they are detailed for Chilla activities to different parts of the country.

Chilla activities in all states are coordinated by district coordinators in different districts, who, in turn, in some states are supervised by "state Amirs".

"As on March 21, there were about 1,746 people staying in Hazrat Nizamuddin Markaz. Of these, 216 were foreigners and 1,530 were Indians.

"Additionally, about 824 foreigners had been, as on March 21, doing Chilla activities in various parts of the country," it said.