As less than a week is left in Eid-ul-Fitr celebrations, the professional and unprofessional beggars have thronged the city’s markets and shopping arcades to secure maximum alms and charities by adopting irritating techniques, which are annoying Eid shoppers. Despite begging has been declared illegal under the country’s laws, the beggars’ influx including male, female, children and persons with disabilities are being witnessed in the jam-packed crossing points, mosques’ gates and mostly frequented public places and food outlets in the city and cantonment areas mostly before Iftar.
These days, Hashtnagri, Gantagar, Firdus, Nothia, Tehkal, Gulbahar, Faqirabad, Meena Bazaar, Karimpura, Shafi Market, Saddar Road, University Town, City Tower, Jawad Tower and Deans Trade Centre are flooded with beggars. They have occupied key points in front of shopping malls, mosques, road signals, bus terminals, railway stations, traffic squares and streets. Most professional beggars employ various tricks to exploit human nature and religious sentiments by crying, weeping and chasing people in public places while wearing miserable attire.The unchecked trained beggars are pestering Eid shoppers in markets or running after them or behind their cars to collect maximum alms in name of Zakat, Fitrana, Sadqa and Khairat.
Some beggars roaming with exposed wounds keep on holding and touching customers when they come out of their vehicles, which could expose them to contiguous diseases and viral infections.It has been witnessed that some beggars were emotionally blackmailing people by carrying medical prescriptions and disability certificates. ‘Alms’ seekers can also be seen in city markets asking for charity in the name of construction of mosques while many beggars were resorting to lame-duck excuses like seeking treatment of their ailing family or lost jobs during COVID-19.
“Begging has emerged as a major social evil in recent years to the nuisance of Peshawarties,” Riazul Haq, a retired school teacher, who was irritated by beggars during Eid shopping at Qissa Khwani bazaar, told APP.
Besides bazaars and shopping arcades, he said Eid shoppers were facing great inconvenience at traffic signals, food restaurants, bus terminals, railways stations, mosques, hospitals, markets and public places due to swarms of beggars in Peshawar.
