The J&K Lieutenant Governor (L-G) administration has decided not to allow congregational prayers at the historic Jamia Masjid in Srinagar on the occasion of Shab-e-Qadr, night-long prayers, and Jumat-ul-Vida, last Friday of Ramadan, evoking sharp criticism from the regional parties and Hurriyat chairman and chief priest Mirwaiz Umar Farooq.
According to a spokesman of the Anjuman Auqaf Jamia Masjid, caretakers of the mosque located at Nowhatta in Srinagar, the government and police officials, headed by a magistrate, visited the Jamia Masjid premises on Wednesday and “conveyed that the authorities have decided not to allow Shab–e–Qadr and Jumat–ul–Vida prayers”.
The Peoples Alliance for the Gupkar Declaration (PAGD), an amalgam of regional parties, denounced the L-G administration’s move.
