On Thursday, Maulana Mufti Asad Qasmi of Madrasa Jamia Sheikhul Hind criticized former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, who visited the Navagraha temple in Poonch district and offered water to a Shivling. He said that what Mehbooba Mufti has done is inappropriate and not permitted in Islam.
Qasmi, who is also a former student of Darul Uloom Deoband and national vice-president of Ittehad Ulema e Hind said, “Be it Mehbooba Mufti or any other common Muslim, everyone is aware of what our religion says, what our religion allows and what all is prohibited in our religion.”
“This is India, everyone here is free to do whatever he wants… However, what Mehbooba Mufti has done is inappropriate and not permitted in Islam. It is not that what Mehbooba Mufti has done will strip her of her religion, but what she has done is against the principles of Islam,” he added.
“महबूबा ने जो किया, वह सही नहीं है, उनका मंदिर में जाना इस्लाम की मान्यता के ख़िलाफ़ है”
— News24 (@news24tvchannel) March 16, 2023
◆ महबूबा मुफ्ती द्वारा शिवलिंग की पूजा करना देवबंद को रास नहीं आया, असद कासमी ने दिया बयान
Mehbooba Mufti | #MehboobaMufti pic.twitter.com/roKnWLHkb6
To this, Mufti responded and said that she very well knows her religion and was aware of what she was doing. She slammed the Islamic clerics who hit out at her and said, “I don’t want to comment on what Deoband maulana has said. I know my religion very well. It is my personal matter where I go,” said the PDP chief.
“We are a secular nation. We follow ‘Ganga Jamuni tehzeeb’. I respect all religions. I went to a temple built by our leader, Late Yashpal Sharma ji. It is a beautiful temple. Someone at the temple handed me a vessel full of water with love. I respected his affection and devotion and did Jal Abhishek of Shiv Lingam,” she added.
Reportedly, the BJP also slammed the PDP chief and said that her visit to the temple in the first place was a drama and gimmick. Several Twitter users also supported the statement issued by Deoband maulana and criticized Mufti for not following Islamic principles while others mocked her saying that finally the leader was preparing to perform ‘ghar wapsi’.
“Finally she has realized that her ancestors were Hindu. It will be appreciated if she returns to Sanatan whether for political reasons or anything else,” said one of the Twitter users.
Finally she has realized that her ancestors were Hindu.
— Brinda (@Brinda_IND) March 16, 2023
It will be appreciated if she returns to Sanatan whether for political reasons or anything else.
Ghar Wapasi is not far away😂
— Kamlesh Dixit 🇮🇳 (@KamleshDixit23) March 16, 2023
“I am not against any religion but whatever she did is against Islam. Shame on you for doing all this,” said a Muslim social media user.
मैं किसी धर्म के खिलाफ़ नहीं हूं लेकिन इस ने जो भू किया इस्लाम के खिलाफ़ है शर्म आनी चाहिए इस तरह करने पर 😡😡 https://t.co/UfzStSJGyx
— Mustafij Alam .مستفیض علم❀ (@MustafijMd) March 16, 2023
It is not allowed in Islam whether it’s done by Mahbooba or any one.
— Fazlurrahman Madani (@hindifazal) March 16, 2023
Meanwhile, the BJP said that Mufti visiting the temple was a drama. State spokesperson Ranveer Singh said that Mehbooba Mufti is not going to achieve anything by doing this gimmick. He recalled how in 2008, Mehbooba Mufti and her party opposed the allotment of land to the Amarnathji Shrine Board. “Mehbooba Mufti’s party did not allow the temporary transfer of land to the Shrine Board for construction of huts for the pilgrims,” he said.
