Mirwaiz is a free man, J&K administration tells High Court

Kashmir's Mirwaiz Umar Farooq is declared a free man by J&K administration amid security concerns.

Hurriyat chairman and the Kashmir Valley’s chief cleric Mirwaiz Umar Farooq “is a free man”, the J&K Lieutenant-Governor’s administration told the Jammu and Kashmir High Court on Wednesday.

“The petitioner [Mirwaiz] has alleged that he has been detained in his house, as police and vehicular deployment has been made outside his house. This assertion of the petitioner is absolutely false and far from facts, as the petitioner is a free man, who on and off visits doctors, relatives, and attends other religious activities at his will,” senior Additional Advocate General Mohsin Qadri told the court.

Mr. Qadri countered the allegations levelled by the Mirwaiz that security forces deploy vehicles outside his residence gate in Srinagar’s Nigeen area as being “purely for safety”. “It is purely for safety and security purpose, and as a preventive measure, so as to foil any attempt of anti-national elements,” he said.

The L-G administration, in its reply, listed the dates from February 6, 2023, when the Mirwaiz ventured out of his residence to attend marriage ceremonies and meet relatives. It also mentioned three Fridays when the Mirwaiz attended Friday prayers at the historic Jamia Masjid in Srinagar in September, 2023. The Mirwaiz has attended the Friday prayers only on three occasions since 2019.

“The petitioner is a free man, and whenever he desires to go anywhere, he is being provided proper security arrangements for his own safety and security,” Mr. Qadri told the court.

The reply also mentioned the assassination of the Mirwaiz’s father, Maulana Muhammad Farooq, in 1990. “Mr. Farooq, who was a prominent religious leader of Kashmir, was targeted and killed by terrorists. Therefore, the safety and security of the petitioner cannot be undermined, as he is also a prominent religious figure like his father,” the reply said.

It said the Mirwaiz’s residence was located at “a very sensitive and (with) strategic points, as University of Kashmir, National Institute of Technology, Dargah Shrine and Nigeen Club is also located in the vicinity”.