Srinagar, October 13: Srinagar MP Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi has criticised the Jammu and Kashmir Waqf Board’s reported move to regulate Friday sermons in mosques, describing it as an “assault on our faith” and demanding the immediate withdrawal of the directive.
In a post on X, Ruhullah said the pulpit loses its essence and institutional value when it surrenders to power, asserting that it was never intended to bow before authority.
“The Waqf Board’s plan to dictate Friday sermons is an assault on our faith, dressed up as ‘coordination’,” he wrote.
Questioning the proposed role of a committee in determining the content of religious sermons, the MP said no committee should decide what Islamic scholars, or Ulema, preach in the house of Allah.
Ruhullah further asserted that religious pulpits could not be silenced through a circular and called for the order to be withdrawn immediately.
“The Mimber (Pulpit) is not up for negotiation,” he said, reiterating his opposition to the reported directive and emphasising the autonomy of religious scholars in delivering Friday sermons.
