Omar Abdullah and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq slam J&K Waqf Board move to 'standardise' Friday sermons

Srinagar: Political leaders across the spectrum, including Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, have criticised the J&K Waqf Board, led by BJP leader Darakhshan Andrabi, over its decision to introduce uniform topics for Friday sermons at shrines and mosques in the Union Territory.

Terming the move as "BJP's interference in the religious affairs" of Muslims, they demanded that the Waqf Board be brought under the control of the elected government.

The political backlash followed a recent meeting of the J&K Waqf Board, chaired by Andrabi, at which it was decided to constitute a core committee of Muftis, Imams and Khateebs to identify and finalise common topics for Friday sermons at shrines, jamia masjids and other religious institutions associated with the board.


The meeting was attended by several scholars, including Abdul Rashid Dawoodi, Dr Ghulam Haleem, Syed Mohammad Hussain Haqani and others. Andrabi said the initiative aimed to "address social evils and other issues from the pulpit". However, she later denied issuing any formal order, stating that the community-focused initiative was entirely "driven by Imams, Khateebs and Muftis".

"This is an unacceptable attempt by the BJP to interfere in the religious affairs of Muslims and will not be accepted under any circumstances. The BJP-appointed chairperson must immediately halt this misplaced attempt to please her masters," Abdullah wrote on X.

The Muttahida Majlis-e-Ulema (MMU), an amalgam of around 50 religious organisations across Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh led by Mirwaiz Farooq, termed the move a "devious agenda" and "a forcible state intrusion into the religious sphere, which is against law and principles of freedom of religious practice".