Religious Surveys and Police Actions in Sambhal UP a Growing Concern for Muslim Sentiments in India: Mirwaiz Umar Farooq
Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, delivering the Friday sermon at Jama Masjid, Srinagar, addressed pressing issues concerning Muslims in India and Kashmir, expressing grave concerns over recent events and their implications.
“Five Muslim youth were killed in police firing during a survey of the 500-year-old Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal, Uttar Pradesh. This survey was ordered by the court. The killing of these youth as part of discriminatory police action is both deeply distressing and highly condemnable.
While this matter is yet unresolved, another court in Rajasthan’s Ajmer has ordered a survey of the iconic Ajmer Sharif Dargah, the revered shrine of Sufi saint Hazrat Moinuddin Chishti (Rah). Earlier, the Gyanvapi Mosque too underwent a court-ordered survey. A deliberate pattern seems to be emerging: doubts are first raised, followed by court-mandated surveys, which then lead to majority claims being prioritised. The events surrounding the Babri Masjid—its disputed claims, demolition, and the subsequent court decisions—remain vivid in the memory of Muslims.
This is a profoundly troubling and serious matter for Muslims not only in India and Kashmir but across the subcontinent and the wider world. The shrine of Hazrat Moinuddin Chishti, a saint revered by Muslims globally, attracts thousands of devotees daily. This 800-year-old shrine is deeply connected to the history and cultural spread of Islam in the Indian subcontinent. For the people of Kashmir, it holds special significance as a site of pilgrimage.
Actions such as these, backed by the judiciary and the government, gravely undermine the religious sentiments of millions of Muslims in this region. If India is truly a secular state as its preamble asserts, governed by a constitution that includes the Places of Worship Act, why are such divisive issues continually raised and entertained? The answer, sadly, is known to many. This deliberate and dangerous trend is being actively encouraged, and its consequences could be dire.
Furthermore, the issue of the Waqf amendment is causing deep anxiety among Muslims in India, as well as in Jammu and Kashmir. The Mutahida Majlis-e-Ulema (MMU) has already sent a letter to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), seeking a meeting to discuss this matter. Muslims in Jammu and Kashmir, like those across India and the subcontinent, are watching these developments with growing concern. If this mindset of targeting Islamic heritage and institutions is not curtailed, any backlash resulting from these provocations will be the responsibility of the authorities.
I also strongly condemn the actions of the police in preventing media coverage of my speech at Jama Masjid by barring journalists from entering the mosque. The media plays a vital role in reporting matters of public interest and concern. Obstructing their work or harassing them undermines the principles of transparency and accountability, which are essential for any democratic state.”
Mirwaiz Umar Farooq’s address highlights the deepening concerns among Muslims over the perceived targeting of their religious institutions and the broader implications for communal harmony in the region. His statement reflects a call for justice, accountability, and the safeguarding of constitutional values.
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