Mirwaiz put under house arrest ahead of Friday prayers

Srinagar, February 9

Kashmir’s chief cleric and moderate Hurriyat chairman, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, was once again placed under house arrest and barred from addressing the Friday congregation, the managing body of Srinagar’s grand mosque Anjuman Auqaf Jamia Masjid said.

The Anjuman said, “Mirwaiz Umar Farooq has been placed under house arrest again. He was detained today ahead of the Friday congregation at Jamia Masjid.”

The mosque’s management further said that Mirwaiz was scheduled to deliver a special address at Jamia Masjid.

“A large number of people were expected to gather at the mosque today to listen to Mirwaiz’s sermon. However, early in the morning, a police contingent was stationed outside his residence and he was detained,” Anjuman added.

The management strongly condemned the repeated house arrests of Mirwaiz, particularly on Fridays, preventing him from visiting Jamia Masjid to deliver the sermon and participate in the obligatory prayers.

Since his release from house arrest in September last year, Mirwaiz has been permitted to deliver the Friday sermon on only three occasions.

Last month, Mirwaiz was allowed to travel to New Delhi for the first time since being placed under house arrest in August 2019 following the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019. Mirwaiz described his visit to Delhi as “purely private and personal.”