MMU Rolls Out Coordinated Friday Sermons Across J&K Amid Waqf Board Uniform‑Khutba Row
The move comes weeks after the Waqf Board’s internal deliberations on prescribing common sermon themes triggered sharp criticism from political parties and clerical bodies. Two Jammu‑based clerics, who participated in the Board’s virtual meeting, later revealed that several scholars had expressed reservations over the proposal but were “silenced” when Chairperson Dr Darakhshan Andrabi insisted that the decision had actually been taken four years ago and that “the time has come to implement it”
SRINAGAR: In a significant religious development against the backdrop of an escalating controversy over the J&K Waqf Board’s proposed “uniform Friday sermons”, the Mutahida Majlis‑e‑Ulema (MMU) on Friday rolled out its first coordinated khutba across mosques and Imambargahs in the Kashmir Valley, Jammu, Chenab valley, Kargil and Leh. The umbrella body of religious organisations selected Imaan (faith) as the inaugural theme, signalling what insiders described as a “collective assertion of religious autonomy”.
The move comes weeks after the Waqf Board’s internal deliberations on prescribing common sermon themes triggered sharp criticism from political parties and clerical bodies. Two Jammu‑based clerics, who participated in the Board’s virtual meeting, later revealed that several scholars had expressed reservations over the proposal but were “silenced” when Chairperson Dr Darakhshan Andrabi insisted that the decision had actually been taken four years ago and that “the time has come to implement it”.
Delivering the central sermon at Charar‑e‑Sharief’s historic Khanqah, Kashmir’s chief Muslim cleric Mirwaiz Muhammad Umar Farooq underscored the need to safeguard faith amid “worldly temptations, pressures and challenges”. He reminded worshippers that Imaan was not a verbal claim but the “foundation of a believer’s entire life”, reflected in conduct, choices and dealings.
MMU insiders say the coordinated khutba initiative—decided at the September 15 Ulema Conference—was accelerated after the Waqf Board’s recent push for uniform sermons. “This is a voluntary, scholarly initiative rooted in Islamic tradition, not an administrative diktat,” an MMU member said, adding that the Board’s move was seen as “encroachment into religious space”.
The controversy erupted after reports that the J&K Waqf Board was considering a mechanism to introduce uniform Friday sermons across mosques and shrines under its control. The proposed system envisaged pre‑selected themes approved by a committee of scholars to address social issues such as drug abuse, youth alienation, suicides, family disputes and moral decline. If implemented, J&K would become the first region in the country to attempt such a coordinated sermon structure.
However, political leaders and clerical bodies reacted sharply to the reported diktat. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah accused the BJP of “interfering in Muslim religious affairs”, calling the move unacceptable. The MMU termed the idea “ridiculous”, asserting that the Mimbar or pulpit a sacred trust, and that religious guidance falls exclusively within the domain of Ulema, Imams and recognised religious institutions rooted in Islamic scholarship and the traditions of various schools of thought. It stressed that neither the state nor any government-linked institution could arrogate to itself the authority to determine religious discourse or script sermons for delivery in mosques.
Two clerics from Jammu later disclosed that during the Board’s virtual meeting, multiple participants objected to the proposal, arguing that sermon content cannot be standardised administratively. However, they said the chairperson overruled objections, claiming the decision had been taken years earlier and must now be implemented.
Their revelations intensified concerns that the Board was attempting to push through a long‑pending plan despite resistance from religious scholars.
Dr Darakhshan Andrabi, a senior BJP leader and chairperson of the Waqf Board, denied issuing any directive and said the controversy stemmed from “misinterpretation”. She argued that the Board merely wanted mosques to collectively address social problems and insisted that Imams would remain free to frame sermons. She rejected allegations of political interference, saying discussions on drug abuse or moral decline should not be viewed through a political lens. She also pointed out that prominent clerics, including the Mirwaiz, have themselves spoken on social issues from mosque pulpits.
Despite the clarification, the controversy has snowballed into a wider debate over religious autonomy and the limits of state‑linked institutions. The MMU’s coordinated khutba drive is widely seen as a direct counter‑move—an assertion that the pulpit remains a sacred trust of scholars, not administrators.