SRINAGAR: Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti has demanded blasphemy charges against Jammu and Kashmir Waqf Board chairperson and senior BJP leader Darakshan Andrabi after a plaque bearing the national emblem was installed at the revered Hazratbal Shrine.
Calling the move “deeply offensive to religious sentiments,” Mufti said during a press conference in Srinagar that the Waqf Board had “no authority to impose national symbols inside places of worship.” She urged authorities to take legal action against Andrabi and other officials named on the plaque.
Her statement followed widespread outrage after a video emerged on Friday showing men vandalising the granite plaque. In the footage, a man repeatedly smashed the engraved Ashoka emblem with bricks as others shouted slogans calling for Islamic rule. The plaque had been inaugurated under Andrabi’s leadership and bore the names of Waqf officials.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah also criticised Andrabi, questioning why a national emblem was installed at a religious site. “The emblem belongs on government buildings, not shrines. An apology is due for hurting the people’s sentiments,” he said.
The BJP condemned the vandalism, calling it an attack on the Constitution. Andrabi, defending the installation, described the act of defacement as “an assault on the national symbol” and urged police to book those responsible under the stringent Public Safety Act.
Police have since registered a case and detained at least 26 people identified through CCTV footage. The damaged plaque has been removed, and investigations are ongoing.
Religious scholars and community leaders have also weighed in, arguing that Islamic traditions prohibit sculptures or iconography in mosques and shrines, making the emblem’s placement inappropriate.
Legal experts point out that the State Emblem of India (Prohibition of Improper Use) Act, 2005 restricts the emblem’s use to official functions of government, raising further questions about its display at Hazratbal.
The controversy has once again exposed the delicate intersection of politics, religion, and national symbols in Jammu and Kashmir. With emotions running high, the issue is expected to dominate both legal scrutiny and political debate in the days ahead.
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