No prayers at Eidgah; top cop contradicts BJP's Andrabi

The Jammu and Kashmir Police will not allow Eid prayers at the historic Eidgah in Srinagar this year. The police does not want to allow anything that may disrupt peace and create law and order problems, a senior official said on the sidelines of a function in Zojila on Monday. The last time Eid prayers were held at Eidgah was in 2019, before abrogation of Article 370.

He was responding to queries on the statement made earlier this month by J&K Waqf Board chairperson and BJP member Darakhshan Andrabi. If weather permits, Eid prayers will be offered this year at Eidgah in Srinagar as there is a good atmosphere in Kashmir now, Andrabi had said.

"This year, we won't allow Eid prayers at the Eidgah. We will do whatever is necessary to ensure that there is no disruption of peace. Nobody will be allowed to create law and order situation at any cost," the officer said.


The administration remains apprehensive of anti-government protests after prayers. "We all know what happens in the area after the prayers, so we can't allow Eid prayers yet...we may have to sacrifice a little to ensure peace on the ground," the officer said.

J&K Police has maintained that the region has been more peaceful, compared to the past several years, and militancy has been on the decline.