YORKSHIRE: The Yorkshire County Cricket hosted the first-ever Eid Milan event here at Headingley Stadium in an attempt to foster religious tolerance and bring people closer.

Following the footsteps of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG), Yorkshire also hosted the Eid celebrations to portray solidarity with the Muslim community residing in the region.

More than 200 guests including a number of community groups, dignitaries, religious leaders, and the staff of the Yorkshire Cricket Organization, attended the glittering event.

The special event commenced with the recitation of the Holy Quran by Imam Qari Asim MBE from Makkah Mosque in Headingley. The Imam of the Mosque then also spoke to the attendants and discussed the importance of Eid Milan.

“This time Eid was even more special because after covid, after two years of separation, isolation one way or another, we could actually come together and hold each other in our arms,” Qari Asim stated.

Hailing from India, the Director of Business at the Yorkshire County Cricket Club (YCCC) Maroof Khan shared his experience of the Eid while growing up in his country of birth.

“What does Eid Milan mean to me. Growing up in the beautiful and wonderful country of India it meant celebration, it meant happiness, it meant sharing, it meant caring,” Maroof stated.

“For me this great club is my family so I’m happy I’m part of this wonderful day, celebrating Eid Milan with you, Yorkshire County Cricket Club and my colleagues from the community,” he maintained.

The United Kingdon (UK)’s first female Muslim Mayor Naveeda Ikram also spoke on the night and claimed that standing against racism and Islamophobia is never easy but it takes one person to do it then the whole community will be standing behind him.

“It’s clearly been a very delightful night and we can all feel the positivity across the board,” Naveeda said.

“Standing up to racism, islamophobia, bullying, any kind of phobia is never easy. It takes one person to do that, and we as a community have to stand behind that,” she concluded.

It is pertinent to mention here that Yorkshire County CC faced a major backlash in late 2021 following the racism scandal raised by the UK cricketer Azeem Rafiq, who complained of experiencing “inhuman behaviour.”

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