The Anjuman Auqaf, a caretaker body of historic Jamia Masjid, on Friday said the police locked up the mosque and dissuaded worshippers from offering the congregational noon prayers, days after the J&K administration allowed a major congregational prayer at the Khawaja Naqshband shrine in the city.
“The authorities did not allow congregational Friday prayers at the Jamia Masjid, as heavy deployment of forces was carried out since morning. When the Auqaf employees opened up the gates of the mosque, the police personnel forced them to close all the gates and no ‘namazis’ were allowed inside,” a spokesman of the body said.
A number of worshippers, including women and children, had gathered outside the mosque after the Auqaf announced they would re-open it like other smaller mosques in the Valley.
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“Earlier, the pretext of pandemic was employed to prevent Muslims from offering Friday prayers at Jamia Masjid. It stands completely exposed today. It is extremely unfortunate and disdainful of the authorities to disallow Muslims of the Valley from praying at the central mosque,” it said.
The chief cleric of the mosque is Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, who also heads a faction of the Hurriyat. Mr. Farooq has been under house arrest since August 2019 and disallowed to lead any prayers at the mosque.