Kashmir’s chief cleric and Hurriyat Conference chairman, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, was placed under house arrest on Friday, preventing him from offering congregational prayers at the Jamia Masjid, his office said.
In a post on X, Mirwaiz Manzil said the authorities had once again put Mirwaiz Kashmir under house arrest, stopping him from going to the historic Jamia Masjid in Srinagar to deliver the Friday sermon and offer prayers.
The statement said he was also scheduled to launch the annual Mirwaiz Foundation Calendar, a programme aimed at celebrating the region’s shared spiritual and cultural heritage. However, this too was prevented. “Curtailing peaceful religious or community activity is very sad and unjust,” it said.
On Thursday, Mirwaiz, regarded as a moderate separatist voice in the Kashmir Valley, removed the designation “Chairman, All Parties Hurriyat Conference” from his verified X profile.
Describing the move as a “Hobson’s choice,” Mirwaiz said he was forced to do so after authorities warned that his social media account could be taken down due to the ban on Hurriyat constituents under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
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