Mirwaiz Umar Placed Under House Arrest Ahead Of Key Muslim Clerics' Meet
“Again placed under strict House Arrest today with barbed wires barricading the lanes leading to my home! A meeting of Muttahida Majlis e Ulema (MMU) was to be held at my residence to address concerns post-WAQF interim SC judgement and pressing social and religious matters”: Reports
SRINAGAR: The authorities in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday placed Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, the region's chief Muslim cleric and Hurriyat Conference leader, under strict house arrest in capital Srinagar, sealing off lanes to his residence with barbed wire.
This occurred hours before a scheduled meeting of the Muttahida Majlis-e-Ulema (MMU), a coalition of Muslim religious leaders headed by Mirwaiz, set to discuss the Supreme Court’s interim ruling on the Waqf Act and concerns over the supply of rotten meat and related products in the Kashmir Valley.
Mirwaiz confirmed the restrictions on X, stating, “Again placed under strict House Arrest today with barbed wires barricading the lanes leading to my home! A meeting of Muttahida Majlis e Ulema (MMU) was to be held at my residence to address concerns post-WAQF interim SC judgement and pressing social and religious matters.”
He condemned the curbs as reflective of the “weaknesses and insecurities” of the authorities.
The MMU, in a separate statement, said that it was scheduled to convene at Mirwaiz’s residence in Mirwaiz Manzil in Srinagar’s Nigeen area to deliberate on the Waqf Amendment Bill and review a report by the Council’s Muftis on the issue of rotten meat in the Valley. The organization strongly condemned the authorities’ actions as “extremely regrettable” for preventing the meeting. The authorities have not yet issued a statement regarding the restrictions.