Major mosques shuts in Srinagar on Shab-i-Baraat
By Mudasir Ahmad Khan
Srinagar
Shab-i-Baraat uses to bring lot of light and huge congregations in all the major shrines and masjids of Srinagar City. Due to lockdown and severe restrictions, most of the people started praying at their homes as Jamia Masjid Srinagar, Hazratbal Shrine and all main Mosques remain shut.
Police and security forces enforced severe restrictions in and around the main graveyard of Srinagar city know as Malkhah. Hundreds of people used to go to offer Fateh to their deceased dear ones before going to the shrines and mosques on Shab-i-Baraat. With 30 more cases surfacing in Kashmir valley, authorities beefed up security and asked the elders in all the areas of Srinagar to desist from conversing in the mosques for night long prayers.
At few places within their own compounds, candles were lit on the days of Shab-i-Baraat as most of the streets wore a deserted look. Curfew life restrictions were imposed in all the areas of Srinagar and people were not allowed to move on the main roads after evening hours. At Jamia Masjid Srinagar, gates remained locked even as Mirwaiz Umer Farooq has already cancelled the Shab-i-Baraat congregation at the mosque.
People of Kashmir have been witnessing a Lockdown and severe restrictions frequently in the past 8 months as for most of the Fridays, no Friday prayers could be held in the city after August 5 last year then central government abrogated Art-370 and imposed Lockdown to avoid protests and violence.
