Kashmir Waqf Board Faces Criticism Over Proposed Friday Sermon Guidelines
(MENAFN) A plan to establish shared themes for Friday sermons at mosques and religious institutions affiliated with the Jammu and Kashmir Waqf Board has drawn strong opposition from political figures and Muslim religious organisations in Indian-administered Kashmir.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah rejected the proposal on Tuesday, describing it as “unacceptable.” He accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of meddling in Muslim religious matters and called on the board’s chairperson to abandon the initiative.
“The BJP-appointed Chairperson must immediately halt this misplaced attempt to please her masters,” Abdullah said in a post on X.
People’s Democratic Party (PDP) leader Mehbooba Mufti also challenged the proposal, asking who would have the authority to determine the subjects imams should address in their sermons.
“Our imams and maulvis know what to say and when to speak,” she said, while advocating for the Waqf Board to be placed under the administrative authority of the Jammu and Kashmir government.
The board currently operates under the control of the BJP rather than the region’s elected administration.
The Mutahida Majlis-e-Ulema (MMU), a coalition of religious organisations led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, also denounced the initiative. The group maintained “that determining sermon content was the responsibility of Islamic scholars and not an administrative body.”
It called on the board to concentrate on overseeing and safeguarding Waqf properties instead of seeking to regulate religious sermons.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah rejected the proposal on Tuesday, describing it as “unacceptable.” He accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of meddling in Muslim religious matters and called on the board’s chairperson to abandon the initiative.
“The BJP-appointed Chairperson must immediately halt this misplaced attempt to please her masters,” Abdullah said in a post on X.
People’s Democratic Party (PDP) leader Mehbooba Mufti also challenged the proposal, asking who would have the authority to determine the subjects imams should address in their sermons.
“Our imams and maulvis know what to say and when to speak,” she said, while advocating for the Waqf Board to be placed under the administrative authority of the Jammu and Kashmir government.
The board currently operates under the control of the BJP rather than the region’s elected administration.
The Mutahida Majlis-e-Ulema (MMU), a coalition of religious organisations led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, also denounced the initiative. The group maintained “that determining sermon content was the responsibility of Islamic scholars and not an administrative body.”
It called on the board to concentrate on overseeing and safeguarding Waqf properties instead of seeking to regulate religious sermons.
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