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Alleged defacement of national emblem at J&K shrine sparks row
The defacement of an Ashoka Emblem plaque at Kashmir's Hazratbal shrine sparked controversy, leading to a political clash over religious sentiments.
Srinagar: The defacement of a stone plaque with the Ashoka Emblem engraved on it at the revered shrine of Hazratbal in Kashmir sparked a row on Friday.
The plaque has been installed at the shrine following restoration work recently.
A group of worshippers on Friday tried to remove the plaque, by hitting it with bricks, saying the plaque with an engraved figure goes against the basic tenets of Islam, which forbids idol worship.
Many devotees said it was “shameful” on the part of the Waqf Board, which carried out the construction work, to be “insensitive” to the religious sentiments of the Muslims in J&K.
The incident also led to a political war of words between National Conference (NC) legislator Tanvir Sadiq and BJP leader and Waqf Board chairperson Darkshan Andrabi.
“I’m not a religious scholar but in Islam, idol worship is strictly forbidden. The foundation of our faith is Tawheed (unity of God) . Placing a sculpted figure at the revered Hazratbal Dargah goes against this very belief. Sacred spaces must reflect only the purity of Tawheed, nothing else,” Sadiq wrote on X.
Andrabi didn’t address the issue directly but blamed NC workers for the attack. She sought registration of a First Information Report (FIR) against Sadiq and a case under the Public Safety Act (PSA) against those who defaced the emblem.
“I request the lieutenant governor and the director general of police to arrest all those goons who created a scene at Dargah Hazratbal today. The case should also be registered against the legislator whose men were involved in the protest and whose tweet provoked the people,” she said. She alleged that NC can’t see another leader doing renovation of the shrines. “It’s our job to renovate shrines and Dargahs and nobody can stop us.”
Andrabi equated the people who defaced the emblem with “terrorists”, and said they have been doing this for many years. “If they aren’t arrested. I will begin a hunger strike.”
