KL NEWS NETWORK
SRINAGAR
Strongly protesting against disallowing Friday congregational prayers at Kashmir’s main Masjid, Jamia Masjid Srinagar for 16 consecutive weeks by sealing the Masjid premises imposing severe curfew, restrictions and curbs and placing its chief and Mirwaiz-e-Kashmir, Muhammad Umar Farooq under house arrest, Hurriyat Conference (m) strongly condemned the government for stopping people from offering Friday prayers at Jamia Masjid by force and once again displaying complete disregard and disdain for the religious sentiments of the people.
After his release from jail, Mirwaiz had announced on 25th that he along with the Muslims of the valley would break the military siege of the Jamia Masjid, where no Friday prayers were allowed for the past 15 weeks and would march to the Masjid to offer prayers, a fundamental religious right of every human being.
“Today when he moved out of his house where he has once again been detained post his release, and moved towards Jamia Masjid, to offer prayers, police and government forces prevented him from doing so and arrested him outside his Nigeen residence,” Hurriyat Conference (m) said in a statement this evening.
Before his arrest, addressing the media persons present outside his residence, Mirwaiz condemned the government for trampling the religious rights of the Muslims and forcibly barring them for offering Friday congregational prayers for 16 consecutive weeks at Jamia Masjid, sealing the entire area around it with massive military presence and converting it into a military garrison.
“Imposing strict curfew and restrictions through heavy deployment of armed forces all over the valley, gives the impression that government is at war with the Namazis whom it sees as a threat to the establishment,” Mirwaiz said.
Mirwaiz said such a negative attitude towards the majority community is extremely unfortunate especially when one sees the stark contrast in which other communities are treated and their religious sentiments respected.
“The facilitation and smooth conduct of the annual Amarnath Yatra by the ruling regime is one such instance,” he added, “while we believe in respecting religious sentiments of people across the board and have always welcomed the Yatris, the double standards of the government, of not even allowing Kashmiri Muslims to offer Friday prayers and thus hurting their religious sentiments would not be tolerated.”
The Hurriyat Conference (m) chairperson also criticized the ruling class for crushing the human and political rights of the people while continuing to carry out nocturnal raids and arresting youth, beating inmates and ransacking homes and asked them to immediately stop these brutal rights violations.
However, Mirwaiz lauded the efforts of the people for their support to the movement.
The Hurriyat Conference (m) statement said, “wherever Friday congregational prayers were allowed today, the Imams and Khateebs condemned the ruling class for disallowing the prayers at Jamia Masjid, Srinagar for the 16th week in a row by using its military might and oppressive.”
Meanwhile, on the occasion of the Sheikh-ul-Alam’s annual Urs, the Khateeb and Imam of Chrar-e-Sharief, Moulvi Ameer-ud-Din condemned the government for stopping thousands of people from offering Friday congregational prayers at Jamia Masjid, Srinagar for the 16th consecutive week, arresting Mirwaiz and placing him under house arrest and raised strong voice against the government for its dictatorial and despotic attitude.
Later, a massive protest march led by Hurriyat Conference workers including Moulvi Muhammad Yaqoob, Hakeem Ghulam Muhammad, Haji Muhammad Younis was staged against government’s tyrannical and autocratic attitude in which the people raised pro-Islam and pro-freedom slogans.
Meanwhile, an Hurriyat Conference (m) spokesperson condemned the disallowing of Friday congregational prayers at Jamia Masjid Srinagar for the 16th week and stopping movement of men, women and children around both Jamia Masjid Srinagar and Mirwaiz Manzil Nigeen.
