Mirwaiz Umar Farooq Under House Arrest, Not Allowed to Offer Prayers: Mosque Management

Hurriyat Conference chairman and Jamia Masjid chief cleric Mirwaiz Umar Farooq placed under house arrest and barred from offering congregational prayers at the mosque in Srinagar on Friday.

Srinagar:Hurriyat Conference chairman and Jamia Masjid chief cleric Mirwaiz Umar Farooq was on Friday placed under house arrest and barred from offering congregational prayers at the mosque here, its managing body said. In a statement, Anjuman Auqaf Jamia Masjid Srinagar, the managing body of the grand mosque located in Nowhatta area of the city, strongly condemned the administration for placing the Mirwaiz under house arrest at his residence in Nigeen.

It said in a statement that Mirwaiz was prevented from fulfilling his religious and official duties as the Mirwaiz-e-Kashmir (chief cleric). The Auqaf said the administration informed Mirwaiz on Friday morning that he was under house arrest and would not be allowed to go to Jamia Masjid during the day.

"It appears that Mirwaiz's house arrest is the consequence of the blasphemous incident that occurred on Wednesday at Government Medical College Srinagar," the statement said. Dozens of students and several junior doctors on Wednesday held a protest on the GMC campus against the student, who allegedly posted a display picture on an app which was deemed blasphemous by many students, police said.

The student was suspended by the administration of the medical college pending an inquiry. Police have also registered a case and investigations are on.