APHC-AJK slams sermon diktat as occupation of faith, mosques in IIOJK
Islamabad: The All Parties Hurriyat Conference Azad Jammu and Kashmir (APHC-AJK) chapter has strongly condemned the illegal, immoral and anti-Islamic order issued by the BJP-installed Waqf Board.
According to Kashmir Media Service, APHC-AJK Convener Ghulam Muhammad Safi, General Secretary Advocate Parvez Ahmad Shah and Secretary Information Imtiaz Wani, in a joint press statement, described the order as a systematic mechanism to control Islam in IIOJK. They said it aimed to advance the BJP’s narrative and counter the freedom movement.
The leaders expressed deep anguish over the order issued by the Waqf Board, led by BJP appointee Darakhshan Andrabi. They described it as a grave interference in Muslims’ religious affairs, aimed at occupying Kashmiris’ faith. “Masjids are the Houses of Allah, not the extension counters of BJP Headquarters,” they added.
The order directs Imams and Khateebs to deliver government-scripted sermons. The leaders said the order sought to institutionalise state control over religion and silence the voice of truth.
The APHC-AJK chapter said regulating Friday sermons was aimed at silencing the voice of freedom. The statement said the move sought to impose a state-sponsored narrative through sacred pulpits. No Waqf Board, bureaucrat or political appointee had the right to dictate an Imam’s sermon, the leaders said. They maintained that an Imam was answerable only to the Holy Quran and Sunnah.
The leaders demanded immediate withdrawal of the order. They warned that attempts to turn mosques into BJP propaganda centres would have serious consequences. They said the Kashmiri people would resist such moves.
The statement said the Waqf Board had lost its religious character under BJP’s handpicked Darakhshan Andrabi. It cited restrictions on traditional Sufi practices at shrines, the imposition of a dress code and the conversion of shrines into tourist attractions. It also alleged that Auqaf shops and properties were allotted to non-state subjects and BJP workers.
The leaders described these measures as systematic disempowerment of Kashmiri Muslims. They called for an independent judicial inquiry into Auqaf corruption since 2019.
The APHC-AJK appealed to Kashmiri ulema, mashaikh, imams and Auqaf committees to reject the orders. It urged them to unite in protecting the sanctity of mosques.
The leaders also urged the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), United Nations Human Rights Council and international human rights organisations to take cognisance of the attack on religious freedom in occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
