JOHOR BARU, Nov 27 ― All district kadi in the state have been asked to refer to their respective district health offices to identify any mosques and surau in the villages or residential areas which record any suspected Covid-19 cases.

Johor Mufti Datuk Yahya Ahmad said that the decree was issued by the Sultan of Johor, Sultan Ibrahim Almarhum Sultan Iskandar, following several positive Covid-19 cases involving imams, bilals, committee members or congregants in several mosques and surau in the state.

Yahya said that those who tested positive had been ordered to undergo quarantine by the Ministry of Health (MoH), while the surau and mosques involved were instructed to be sanitised immediately.

"The kadi can also order that the mosque or surau involved set a limit on the number of congregants to be allowed to participate in the five daily congregational prayers and Friday prayers, if it is feared that it can cause the spread of the virus.

"If the situation is more critical, the kadi can also order that the mosque or surau be closed for a reasonable period so that containment action can be taken until the situation is under control,” he said in a statement today.

"The congregants should perform prayers at home then,” he said.

Yahya also said that Sultan Ibrahim had also decreed that the kadi should issue a stern warning to the mosque and surau committee members to always comply with the standard operating procedures (SOPs) issued by the Johor Islamic Religious Department, MOH and the National Security Council to curb Covid-19 infection. ― Bernama