Govt stops Muslims from offering Eid prayers in Mosque in Srinagar

New Delhi: In Srinagar, authorities shut down the historic Jamia Masjid and stopped Muslims from offering prayers there on Eid, Wednesday morning. They also put moderate Hurriyat leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq into house arrest again, The Wire reported.

Anjuman Auqaf Jamia Masjid, which manages the 14th-century mosque in Srinagar’s Nowhatta locality, said in a statement that police personnel locked the gates of the mosque after morning prayers on Wednesday without giving a written explanation.

Anjuman said that on Wednesday morning, authorities informed him that the congregational Eid prayers could not be performed there. Eid prayers were scheduled for 9:30 am that day.

Jammu and Kashmir celebrated Eid on Wednesday after the crescent was sighted in the Kargil district of Ladakh on Tuesday evening. The rest of India, except Kerala, celebrated the Muslims observed the day on Thursday.

Following the Modi-led Centre’s abrogation of Article 370 and stripping the erstwhile state of J&K of its stateship as well as special status, the authorities in Srinagar stopped allowing Jamia Masjid from holding Eid prayers. They cited law and order issues in the sensitive town of Srinagar.

House arrested Mirwaiz said that the closure of the mosques is part of spiritual oppression and an attack on the religious freedom of the rights of Kashmiri Muslims.

He told The Wire that it was a blatant disregard for the religious sentiments of the Muslim community in Kashmir. It is unacceptable and deeply offensive, he said.

“It is beyond comprehension how authorities can repeatedly target the largest place of worship and put me under house arrest in such a critical time, causing distress and suffering among the faithful,” The Wire quoted him.