Srinagar, Sep 22: Hurriyat Conference chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq was released from house arrest and offered congregational prayers here on Friday, four years after he was taken into detention in the wake of abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution in August 2019. Soon after his release, the Kashmir valley’s head priest headed to the historic Jamia Masjid in the Nowhatta area of the city to offer the Friday congregational prayers after he missed them for 212 weeks.
Anjuman Auqaf Jamia Masjid – the management committee of the mosque – said in the morning that senior police officials visited the Mirwaiz’s residence on Thursday to inform him that the authorities have decided to release him from house detention and allow him to go to Jamia Masjid for Friday prayers. The release of the separatist leader, who heads various religious organisations, comes days after he moved the Jammu and Kashmir High Court. The court, on September 15, gave four weeks’ time to the J-K administration to file its response to the Mirwaiz’s petition. The Hurriyat leader was put under house arrest at his Nigeen residence on August 5, 2019 – the day the BJP-led Centre abrogated the provisions of Article 370 and bifurcated the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir into Union territories. On Friday, the Mirwaiz left his residence in a cavalcade to reach Jamia Masjid at around 1 pm – his first public appearance in four years.
A huge crowd, including women, gathered at the grand mosque to welcome the Mirwaiz. His supporters garlanded him and showered him with sweets and almonds. The rousing reception moved Mirwaiz to tears as he entered the mosque.
A few minutes after his arrival, he delivered the Friday sermon where he touched upon various religious issues. During the sermon, the Hurriyat chief got emotional several times and was seen wiping the tears from his face. At the end of his sermon, he touched the Kashmir issue, calling for the resolution of the issue through dialogue and peaceful means. “This can be a geographical issue for some, but it is foremost a human issue for the people of J-K. We have to rise above the considerations of geography or area and understand the human values and relationships and then move forward towards the resolution of the issues,” he said. He endorsed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks about Ukraine that this was not an era of war.
The Mirwaiz said he has been called anti-national and separatist for advocating peace. He said the phase after the Centre’s decision to abrogate Article 370 has not been easy for the people of J-K as many new laws have been implemented in the UT unilaterally to “weaken” the people. (PTI)
