Answer
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
In this fatwa:
As COVID-19 lockdown continues and as a temporary measure, any mosque that can safely implement Drive-thru Eid prayer following governmental guidelines can do so.
Responding to your question, Sheikh Ahmad Kutty, a senior lecturer and an Islamic scholar at the Islamic Institute of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, states;
Drive-thru Eid prayer
The issue of Drive-thru Eid prayer pertains to an unprecedented situation in Fiqh. Such circumstances are termed as a Nazilah. As is the case in dealing with a Nazilah, we often need to come up with rulings. These rulings should take into account the spirit, objectives, and purposes of the Shariah.
Hence, we do our best to arrive at a judgment based on our understanding of the texts and past precedents.
In light of the above, I would venture to say that for this unprecedented situation, as a temporary measure, any mosque that can safely implement Drive-thru Eid prayer following governmental guidelines can do so.
Two Fiqhi Issues
The two Fiqh issues that we need to sort out here are about the validity of praying in the car and organizing prayer lines.
Firstly, although, ideally, we are to stand and pray, praying in the car would necessitate that we pray seated. The Prophet (PBUH) has already set a precedent for this; as he used to pray Nawafil sitting on his camel or mule.
Therefore, with Eid prayer being a Nafl or non-obligatory prayer, sitting for prayer should pose no real issue or warrant objection.
The second Fiqh issue is around organizing prayer lines. While sitting in the car, one cannot observe the ordinary rules of organizing or adhering to prayer lines. We may find that we have women in the front seat and men in the back or both men and women (siblings) beside each other in the backseats, etc.
However complicated this may seem, I would venture to say that this should not be seen as too much of an issue. This is especially when we consider the fact that such rules are often compromised in the Haram of Makkah during Hajj or Umrah due to overcrowding.
In such circumstances, men and women often end up sharing the same lines without any or tiny gaps between them. It is also a common sight to see women praying in front of men, especially near Maqam Ibrahim.
When there is a hardship, the rules can be relaxed
Scholars have tolerated this because of it being due to unavoidable circumstances. It is precisely for this reason why Usul al-fiqh has rules that dictate that ‘when there is a hardship, the rules can be relaxed’.
Furthermore, as Imam Ibn Taymiyyah has pointed out, citing numerous examples, when a particular condition (on which, the validity of an act of worship is dependent) cannot be implemented, the Ibadah ought to be performed even without it. Examples for this abound in the sources.
For instance, if covering the awrah cannot be done, prayer can even be performed in the nude. A menstruating woman who must leave with a group and cannot wait in Makkah is allowed to make Tawaf al-Ifadah while menstruating (since the condition of Taharah is waived out of necessity).
Why can’t we pray our Eid prayer at home?
Of course, people may ask, why can’t we pray our Eid prayer at home? Nothing should prevent us from doing so. However, Eid is a communal prayer where the Prophet (peace be upon him) even ordered women who were not eligible to pray to join the communal celebration.
Thus, by allowing people to offer prayers in congregation, albeit in their cars and with certain limitations; they would still experience some semblance of the spirit of the community gathering in one place. While praying at home, listening to an online Khutbah, although beneficial, however, would not impart the same communal experience.
Therefore, holding a drive-through prayer is preferable, provided it can be safely implemented. Understandably, organizing such an event requires dedicated volunteers and a lot of patience on the part of organizers and participants.
Almighty Allah knows best.