Srinagar, July 11 (IANS) Senior religious leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq said on Friday that the authorities have not allowed him to go to the Jama Masjid to deliver his weekly sermon.

“Disallowed to go to Jama Masjid today, put under house arrest, fearing the mention of the martyrs of 13th July 1931 in my Friday sermon! The sacrifice of these martyrs and all the martyrs since, is etched in the collective memory of Kashmir and can not be undone by restrictions and bans.”

He further said, “No living nation can forget the supreme sacrifice of life of its martyrs against tyranny and injustice. It is my appeal to the authorities to remove the restrictions and allow people to peacefully pay homage to the martyrs of 13th July. Inshallah if allowed as per our tradition, we will visit the martyrs graveyard on July 13th after Zuhr prayers and pay homage to the revered martyrs”, Mirwaiz Umar said on X.

Mirwaiz Umar was referring to July 13, which was observed as ‘Martyrs’ Day’ in J&K before the abrogation of Article 370. It was a day to remember the death of protesters who stormed the Srinagar central jail on this day in 1931 against the in camera trial of Abul Qadeer, a Pathan butler of a British officer, who had delivered a speech asking people to rise against the autocratic rule of Dogra Maharaja Hari Singh. Twenty-two protesters were killed in the firing by the prison guards, and after Independence in 1947, this day was observed as Martyrs Day by the Jammu and Kashmir government.

The Union Home Ministry has banned the Awami Action Committee headed by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq as an unlawful organisation stoking separatist passions in Kashmir.

Awami Action Committee was formed in 1963 by the late Mirwaiz Maulana Mohammad Farooq, the father of Mirwaiz Umar, during the holy Relic agitation in Kashmir. Mirwaiz Umar Farooq was killed by terrorists in his city outskirts, Nigeen residence, in 1990.

After the abrogation of Article 370 and the bifurcation of J&K into two UTs, law and order became the direct responsibility of the Union Home Ministry.

Almost all separatist leaders were arrested and are being investigated for stoking terrorism through their speeches and getting funds to sustain terrorism from across the border. This includes the JKLF, Hizbul Mujahideen, Jamaat-e-Islami, Awami League and others.

After August 5, 2019, no anti-India protests, stone pelting and arson of public property have taken place in Kashmir.

Although terrorism still exists in J&K, its levels have been brought down significantly by the security forces and the local police so that the common citizen can carry on their daily routine of life without protest shutdowns, curfews or Bandhs called by the separatists.

–IANS

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