Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir): As Eid-ul-Fitr, an occasion marking the end of Ramadan, resonates with celebrations across Jammu and Kashmir, a sombre note persists in the heart of Srinagar. For the fifth consecutive year, the historic Jamia Masjid in Srinagar has remained silent, devoid of the mass prayer that traditionally mark this auspicious day.
The absence of Eid prayers at Jamia Masjid this year, alongside the denial of Shab-e-Qadar and Jummat-ul-Vida prayers, underscores a lingering discord between the mosque's committee and the administration. The Anjuman Auqaf Jama Masjid in Srinagar, responsible for the mosque's affairs, asserts that administrative directives have thwarted their efforts to conduct prayers at the scheduled hour.
"Today also the administration did not allow us to hold prayers at the scheduled time of 9:30 am," lamented a member of the management committee. "Despite our pleas and petitions, they refused to allow prayers at the agreed-upon time, leading to the postponement of the historic mosque's prayers. Police personnel closed the gates of the masjid after fajar namaz and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq had also been placed under house arrest."