Omar Abdullah breaks silence on Hazratbal plaque vandalism row: ‘No place for Ashoka emblem at religious sites’

A group of people who came to offer prayers at the shrine on Friday allegedly damaged the emblem of the inauguration plaque, sparking angry reactions.

Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and Chairperson of Jammu and Kashmir Waqf Board, Darakshan Andrabi, described the vandalism as an act of ‘tarnishing of the national emblem’ and a ‘terrorist attack’ demanding action against the culprits under the Public Safety Act (PSA) – the controversial law that authorises preventive detention of individuals for up to two years without trial.

“The first question that should be asked if these should be an emblem on that plaque. I have not seen such an emblem being put up at any religious place. What was the need to use the emblem in the first place? In fact, why need a plaque? The present look of Hazratbal was given by Sheikh Abdullah, (former CM of J-K) and there is no inauguration plaque there,” Abdullah told reporters on Saturday.

“First, you played with people’s sentiments. You should have apologised and admitted your mistake. The plaque should not be like this. The government emblem is used for government functions but not for religious places,” the chief minister said.

The Hazratbal, along the banks of Dal Lake in the Dargah area of Srinagar, is one of the most revered Muslim shrines in Jammu and Kashmir. It houses the holy relic of the Prophet.

The shrine was renovated recently, and the inauguration plaque placed inside the shrine had the national emblem etched in the stone, which drew sharp criticism from many locals as well as the ruling Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (JKNC).

National Conference leader and Hazratbal MLA Tanvir Sadiq said the plaque with the emblem was against the belief of ‘Tawheed’ (oneness of God). “

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

The Ashoka Emblem features four Asiatic lions standing back to back, symbolising power, courage, confidence and faith.

Andrabi called the protesters ‘terrorists’ and demanded their arrest. “I had warned that such trouble could be created. FIRs will be filed against everyone responsible,” she said.

‘Elected Govt vs L-G’

The row is rooted in the governing system in Jammu and Kashmir, the erstwhile state that was divided into two Union Territories, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, in 2019, coinciding with the abrogation of Article 370.

While Omar Abdullah heads the elected UT government of Jammu and Kashmir, Centre-appointed Lieutenant-Governor Manoj Sinha administration has the say most issues, such as those related to Waqf.

Srinagar’s Hazratbal shrine is a sacred Muslim religious site. On Eid-e-Milad, on 6 September in Kashmir, the sacred relic known as Moi-e-Muqqadas—a strand of the Prophet’s hair—is displayed at the Shrine for the faithful to see (deedar).

Like in the past, thousands of devotees gathered at the shrine for special prayers and to witness the relic being displayed. The relic is kept in a glass casket and displayed on the first floor of the building.