Srinagar: Chairman of the moderate faction of the Hurriyat conference Mirwaiz Umer Farooq has denounced the Islamic State for "promoting terrorism" in the name of Islam.
Farooq, during his recent stay in the national capital, met the Shahi Imam of New Delhi’s Jama Masjid Syed Ahmad Bukhari, Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind President Moulana Mahmood Ahmad Madani and other Muslims leaders and exchanged views on ISIS and Al-Qaeda, besides Kashmir.
After a series of meetings, the Mirwaiz said in a statement, "Groups like ISIS, who are promoting terrorism in the name of Islam, in reality have no regard for Islamic teachings and values. These people are just maligning the great religion for their own personal benefits."
He said, "Islam and terrorism are two opposite poles as the great religion of Islam is meant for the welfare of the entire humanity."
The Mirwaiz's statement followed a recent interview of self-styled 'Wali', which in Arabic means custodian or protector, of Khurasan, Shaykh Haridh Said, in 'Dabiq' magazine, a mouthpiece of ISIS, in which he criticised Pakistan and terror outfit LeT.
In his criticism of Pakistan and LeT, he said, "The apostate factions and agents of Pakistan, such as Lashkar-e-Taiba, do not have control over any territory in the regions of Kashmir because they proceed in accordance with the orders of the Pakistani intelligence as they are the ones who direct their work, pushing them forward when they wish and pulling them back when they wish.
"They also conceal their work when they wish, depending on the local and global atmosphere and based on personal material interests, without any consideration for the interests of the Muslims in Kashmir," he had said.
The self-styled Wali said there are specific arrangements and the Muslims will soon hear "pleasant news" about the expansion of Caliphate to those lands.
The Mirwaiz rejected suggestions that ISIS or Al-Qaeda had any role to play in Kashmir and said any such attempts were made only to malign the movement in the state. "Kashmiris want an amicable solution to the problem and that can be possible if India and Pakistan come together and take into confidence the people of the state," he said.
Noting that the struggle of the Kashmiri people is peaceful and political, based on principle of truth and justice, he said, "Kashmir’s resistance movement has no link with Daesh (ISIS) or Al Qaeda".
Hardliner separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani had also rejected the claims of ISIS, saying the chances of global terror outfit expanding its operations to Kashmir were "next to zero". He had questioned the credentials of the group, saying, "If it had any planning and sincerity, they would have liberated the Al Aqsa mosque in West Asia."
