The authorities on Monday night allowed night-long congregational prayers at historic Jamia Masjid in Srinagar, for the first time since the Centre ended the special constitutional status granted to Jammu and Kashmir in 2019.
Hundreds of worshippers converged at the historic Jamia Masjid built in 1394 and situated in Srinagar’s Nowhatta area in the old city. Night-long prayers were held on the occasion of Shab-e-Qadr, where devotees attend special prayers during the month of Ramzan. The prayers passed off peacefully.
The authorities’ move came after locals protested over the closure of the mosque on the last Friday of Ramzan the previous week. The mosque has been central to anti-India protests in the past and also witnessed violent demonstrations.
A J&K police spokesman uploaded a video of prayers at Jamia masjid on social media. “’Shab-e-Qadr’ prayers are going on smoothly in all the mosques in Srinagar. The clip below is from Jamia Masjid, Nowhatta,” the spokesman said.
A spokesman of the Anjuman, which is a caretaker body of the mosque, said people from across the Valley came to the grand mosque in large numbers and “sought forgiveness from the Almighty Allah on this Night of Power”.
“However, due to the nearly four-year-long detention, the head of Anjuman Auqaf Jama Masjid, Mirwaiz-e-Kashmir Dr Moulvi Muhammad Umar Farooq could neither deliver the sermon nor lead the collective prayer of repentance and forgiveness,” a spokesman of the Anjuman, the caretaker body of the mosque, said.
The Anjuman urged the authorities to change their attitude and ensure the unconditional release of the Mirwaiz on the auspicious occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr so that he could fulfill his religious duties.
Meanwhile, officials said special arrangements were made for hassle free prayers across the Valley. There were no reports of any untoward incident, they said.
Published - April 19, 2023 01:35 am IST
