Auqaf urges for special prayers for respite from drought, condemns Mirwaiz’s continuous house arrest
The Anjuman Auqaf Jama Masjid Srinagar has termed it unjustified that the Mirwaiz-e-Kashmir Dr Moulvi Muhammad Umar Farooq has been disallowed to offer Friday prayers for consecutive 13 weeks, saying he is not allowed to offer and lead important religious duties as Friday prayer at the historic Jama Masjid.
The Anjuman in a statement said the administration is also not providing any genuine reason for such restrictions on Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, due to which the Minbar-o-Mihraab of the historic central grand mosque remains silent.
Such undue curbs on the movement and activities of Mirwaiz-e-Kashmir are tantamount to interference in religious affairs and hurt the emotions and sentiments of the people of the valley, especially the devotees who throng the Jama Masjid Srinagar on Fridays to listen to the sermon of their beloved leader.
Such behaviour of the government is not only sad in every sense but also smacks of its vindictive policy, the statement said.
Meanwhile, Anjuman Auqaf has termed the drought-like situation in the valley as extremely alarming, saying the lack of rain and snow in this season is a matter of concern not only for those associated with the agriculture sector but also for the common man. It said there are even fears of the spreading of various diseases due to the drought.
In this situation, the Auqaf has appealed to all imams of masjids, scholars, heads of religious institutions and the general public to organize ‘Namaz-e-Istisqa’ and pray to Almighty Allah at individual and collective levels for rain and respite from the harsh weather. [KNT]
