Shadow Correspondent
Srinagar, Sep 12:
Hundreds of people offered congregation prayers at Kashmir’s Hazratbal shrine peacefully on Friday following Eid Milad-un-Nabi or Eid-e-Milad, which commemorated on the 12th Rabi’ al-Awwal, the third month of the Islamic lunar calendar.
In Kashmir, special nightlong prayers are held on this occasion with the largest congregation at Hazratbal mosque in Srinagar. On Friday, devotees gather in large numbers at the shrine for nightlong prayers and have a glimpse of the holy relic of the Prophet of Islam. The dome-shaped mosque on the banks of Dal Lake houses a relic of the Prophet (PBUH) that is displayed to the public on this day.
However, this year, the special occasion was marred by controversy after the national emblem was engraved on a stone plaque by Jammu and Kashmir Waqf Board authorities inside the shrine. The stone announcing the renovation work of the sanctum of the shrine carried the names of Waqf officials including its chairman Darakshan Andrabi.
Hailing from Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Andrabi came under the political storm after political parties including the ruling National Conference demanded action against her for hurting the sentiments of Muslims by installing the Ashoka emblem inside the religious place. They cited prohibition of photographs
People Offer prayers at
and sculptures inside mosques in Islam. Security was stepped up around the shrine to ensure peaceful gathering of devotees. The relic was displayed after each prayer since morning with men, women and children gathering at the shrine.
National Conference president Farooq Abdullah was among the devotees saying he prayed for peace that Jammu and Kashmir should come out of this challenging phase.
“There is a conflict everywhere including Gaza. Muslims are facing helplessness. But unless we leave dishonesty, God is not going to be kind to us,” he added.
A devotee, Farooq Ahmad of Baramulla district, said that he spent the entire night offering prayers at the shrine to have a glimpse of the holy relic in the morning. Like him hundreds of people travelled from far-off places to the revered shrine to offer prayers.
“I avoided coming on Eid-e-Milad due to the emblem issue. But today, I feel happy to have offered prayers peacefully,” he added.
Amid this, the Valley’s chief cleric Mirwaiz Umar Farooq said he was put under house arrest and not allowed to participate in a conference scheduled at historic Jamia Masjid in Srinagar.
He said religious scholars were scheduled to participate in ‘Majlis-e-Rahmat-ul-lil-Alameen (PBUH) at Jama Masjid. But the congregation prayers were allowed at the mosque.
“But unfortunately, my gates were locked and police were put outside my house. Our human and political rights already stand denied,” Mirwaiz added. “There is relentless interference in our religious matters from locking us up to silencing voices on issues ranging from the Ashoka plaque at Hazratbal to meddling with Muslim calendar holidays, to disallowing religious functions at masjids. But the pulpit of Jamia Masjid will continue to raise its voice on matters of religious interference or blatant violation of people’s rights and their disempowerment,” said Mirwaiz.
