Srinagar, Oct 13: Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti on Tuesday opposed the Jammu and Kashmir Waqf Board’s move to introduce uniform Friday sermons across mosques in the Union Territory, calling it an interference in religious affairs.
Mufti said the move amounted to an attempt to control religious institutions and clerics, asserting that matters of faith should not be dictated by authorities.
She said the PDP had opposed the Waqf Amendment Bill for similar reasons, maintaining that religious institutions should not be subjected to arbitrary control.
Raising concerns over religious freedom and the autonomy of Muslim institutions, Mufti said Muslims were being excluded from decisions concerning their Waqf properties while mosques were facing attacks.
“If the government insists on proceeding, it must first transfer the administration of Waqf properties in J&K to the elected government and allow the Muttahida Majlis-e-Ulema (MMU), headed by the Mirwaiz of Kashmir, to vet sermons,” she said.
Mufti asserted that religious freedom was a constitutional right and not a privilege that could be granted or withdrawn by those in power.
