TENNIS STAR Sania
Mirza, who earned the ire of Islamic funda- mentalists for shooting on the Mecca
Masjid premises, tendered an "unequivocal" apology on Thursday In a letter to
the Imam of the Mecca Masjid, she said: "It is with a deep sense of re- morse
that I apologise to all my brothers and sisters and respected elders who have
been anguished by my unwittingly entering a portion of land belong- ing to Mecca
Masjid while filming the Charminar with the intention of promoting the heritage
monument which is symbolic of our city" "While I am fully aware that a woman
must not enter the sanctity of the mosque, I was unaware that even entering the
outside gates was seriously objectionable, specially without permission, which I
was as- sured by the agency they possessed." Earlier in the day, the city police
registered a case against her and an ad agency for shooting a film in Mecca
Masjid, a 17th century mosque located next to the Charmi- nar, on Monday
Inspector Hussaini Alam said po- lice booked a case against Sania and others
under section 448 of Indian Penal Code for trespassing in the mosque. The police
action came in the wake of complaint registered on Tuesday by Khaja Nayeemuddin,
who is in charge of the Mecca Masjid and superinten- dent of the minority
welfare department. In his complaint, Nayeemuddin said Sa- nia and others had
not taken per- mission from the department and it thus, amounted to trespass - a
punishable offence. The Majlis-e-Ittehadul Mus- limeen (MIM) party, an ally of
the ruling Congress in the state, made a hue and cry over the episode, al-
leging Sania had hurt the religious sentiments of Muslims.