Change in Muharram Holiday from 14th November to 15th November

The date for Muharram holiday is changed in India from Thursday, 14 November (as earlier declared) to Friday, 15 November.

The Chief Kazi had stated that since the crescent (New Moon) has not yet been sighted  any  part of India for the New Islamic month of Muharram, the 10th day of Muharram 1435 Hijri (Islamic Calendar) will be observed on November 15 and requested to change the holiday.

The various state governments had earlier notified November 14 as a public holiday for Muharram under negotiable Instruments Act, 1881.

The change in muharram holiday 2013 will applicable to the following states and Union Territories:

  • Andhra Pradesh – Government Notification
  • Arunachal Pradesh
  • Assam
  • Bihar
  • Chhattisgarh
  • Goa
  • Gujarat
  • Haryana
  • Himachal Pradesh  – Notification
  • Jammu and Kashmir
  • Jharkhand
  • karnataka – Notification
  • Kerala
  • Madhya Pradesh
  • Maharashtra – Government Notification
  • Manipur
  • Meghalaya
  • Mizoram
  • Nagaland
  • Odisha
  • Orissa
  • Punjab
  • Rajasthan
  • Sikkim
  • Tripura
  • Tamil Nadu  –  Government Notification
  • Uttar Pradesh
  • Uttarakhand
  • West Bengal – Government Notification
  • Andaman and Nicobar Islands
  • Chandigarh
  • Delhi – Government Notification
  • Dadra and Nagar Haveli
  • Daman and Diu
  • Lakshadweep
  • Delhi and Puducherry (Pondicherry)

Earlier in 2012, the holiday on the occasion of Muharram in 2013 was announced on Thursday the 14th November, 2013.  The dates for Islamic holidays are mostly dependent on sighting of the Moon.