Court orders reopening of Shopian educational institution shut under UAPA
Srinagar: A court in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir has ordered the reopening of educational institution, Darul Uloom Jamia Siraj-ul-Uloom, which was declared an unlawful entity under the draconian Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) earlier this year by the Bharatiya Janata Party-led administration.
Principal, District and Sessions Judge, Shopian, Mahmood Ahmad Chaudhry has ordered the reopening of Siraj-ul-Uloom, located at Hillow, Imam Sahib in Shopian. The institution was closed under UAPA proceedings in April 2026.
Advocates S.M. Iqbal and Bashrat Abdullah, who represented the institution before the court, said the court had also directed the administration to constitute a three-member committee to examine the facts concerning the institution.
The court directed that the institution be allowed to reopen and resume educational activities until the case is finally decided. The order came after the seminary approached the court seeking interim relief against its continued closure.
Advocate S.M. Iqbal said around 1,200 students were enrolled at the seminary, including nearly 400 residential students. “The main case is still underway, but we filed an interim application because the future and education of children were at stake,” Iqbal told reporters.
He said the institution had also brought to the court’s notice that its properties were deteriorating during the closure and that no proper administrative arrangements had been made.
Iqbal said the court found that the material placed by the government, at the present stage of the proceedings, was not sufficient to justify keeping the entire institution shut. He said the court had also observed that the powers exercised were excessive in relation to the allegations levelled against the institution.
The reopening, however, will remain subject to supervision by a three-member committee to be constituted by the government.
The court further directed that the order be widely publicised through newspapers and other media so that students who had left the institution could return without hindrance, irrespective of whether they had secured admission elsewhere.
Advocate Bashrat Abdullah, who also represented the seminary, said the BJP-led administration’s action was based on allegations of unlawful activities at the institution. He said the applicants had produced documents and other material before the court to contest the allegations, while the opposing side had failed to provide evidence establishing that unlawful activities were being carried out at the seminary.
The educational institution was shut following an order issued by Divisional Commissioner Kashmir Anshul Garg on April 24, 2026. The administration had acted on the basis of a dossier alleging illegal activities at Darul Uloom Jamia Siraj-ul-Uloom in the Imam Sahib area of Shopian.
The April order alleged sustained and covert links between the institution and Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu and Kashmir, which was banned by the Indian government in 2019 under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
The government’s decision had drawn criticism from political parties in Jammu and Kashmir, with several leaders demanding withdrawal of the order.
More than 300 educational institutions run by Falah-e-Aam (FAT), an affiliate of Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu and Kashm, have been stopped from operating by the LG regime on direction of Indian Home Minister Amit Shah.
The socio-religious and political organization Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu and Kashmir was banned in 2019. The Indian Ministry of Home Affairs declared Jamaat-e-Islami J&K an unlawful association in February 2019 and renewed the ban in February 2024.
