Plaque with Ashoka emblem in Srinagar’s revered Hazratbal sparks protests, political row

On Friday, people who came to offer prayers at the Hazratbal mosque allegedly pelted the inauguration plaque with stones, vandalised it and raised slogans to protest the emblem, with one protester saying that Islam doesn’t allow any sculptures inside mosques or shrines.

Installation of the plaque eventually snowballed into a major political row, with Kashmiri leaders calling it the Waqf Board’s “brazen attempt to hurt Muslim sentiments”.

The vice-chairperson of the Wakf Board, Darakhshan Andrabi, is a Bharatiya Janata Party leader.

Reacting to the plaque, National Conference leader and Hazratbal legislator Tanvir Sadiq said it was against the Islamic belief of ‘Tawheed’ (oneness of God).

“I’m not a religious scholar but in Islam, idol worship is strictly forbidden—the gravest of sins,” Sadiq said in a post on X. “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.”

On her part, Andrabi, who has courted several controversies during her tenure as vice-chairperson of the Waqf Board, called the protestors “terrorists” and demanded their arrest without delay. She also blamed Sadiq for “adding fuel to fire”.

Sadiq’s tweet, however, came after the protests.

“I had warned that such trouble could be created. FIRs will be filed against everyone responsible — including the MLA — whose tweet added fuel to the fire,” Andrabi said.

These remarks have further fuelled the row, with political leaders accusing Andrabi of issuing threats.

People were “rightly offended”, National Conference MP Aga Ruhullah Mehdi said, calling Andrabi’s remarks “foolish, unacceptable, and an assault on people’s attachment with their beloved shrine”.

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leader Iltija Mufti said Andrabi’s statement “reflects BJPs punitive and communal mindset”.

“Labelling Kashmiris as ‘terrorists’ just because they expressed their anger on something which hurt their religious sentiments & asking police to slap them with PSA reflects BJPs punitive and communal mindset,” Iltija posted on X, adding: “It seems that Muslims are deliberately being provoked”.

Meanwhile, former Srinagar Mayor Juandi Azim Mattu wondered why the ruling National Conference was not acting against Andrabi.

“I agree wholeheartedly that there should be no foundation or inauguration stones inside shrines, especially Dargah Hazratbal. This is a call of humility and surrender to the Almighty,” Mattu said. “However, why doesn’t NC then remove the Waqf Chairperson rather than tweeting about it?”

In its official statement, the ruling National Conference called it “a matter of grave concern”. The Waqf is “not the personal estate of any individual”, the statement said.

“Yet we now witness an unelected individual, with no mandate from the people of Jammu and Kashmir, crowning herself inside holy shrines — the very places where Dastaar Bandi, a long held religious cultural practice was banned. This act not only disrespects the sanctity of our shrines but also mocks the very principles of accountability and humility that Islam upholds,” the statement said.

It goes on to say: “Even more disturbing is that instead of offering an apology to the people for hurting their religious sentiments — which under Indian law itself constitutes an offence — threats are being issued of arrests under the PSA. Is this the future of Waqf management in Jammu and Kashmir — run not with respect for faith and community, but with arrogance, spectacle, and fear?”