Abrar Nabi
Srinagar, Oct 10: Jammu and Kashmir Grand Mufti Nisar ul Islam on Saturday called for restoring Kashmir’s historical position as a seat of Islamic spirituality, while flagging rising moral degradation, expensive Nikah ceremonies and dowry demands as pressing concerns before the Muslim community.
Addressing a session of the Muslim Personal Board here, the Grand Mufti as per news agency Kashmir News Service (KNS) said the meeting was a continuation of the Board’s work and aimed at examining the present situation in detail.
Our aim is to restore the position of Kashmir, which was the place of Sufiya,” he said, referring to the region’s legacy as a centre of Sufi saints and spiritual figures.
He said the objective was to enable people to face the challenges confronting the Ummah, and that representatives from all parts of Jammu and Kashmir had been invited to the meeting.
The Grand Mufti announced that the next session would be held on a large scale and asked people to prepare for it. The Muslim Personal Board believes in co-operation and wants to work for co-operation, he said.
Listing the issues discussed, he said participants spoke about moral degradation and the lack of co-operation, besides the validity of the Shariah. We want Muslims to respect the validity of the Shariah and to follow it, he said.
He also pointed to social practices burdening families. We know that there are issues related to marriage, dowry, and that Nikah has become very expensive. There are conditions for dowry, for employment, and moral degradation is increasing, he said.
In a notable outreach, the Grand Mufti said he had instructed, Dr. Nilofer, to bring together women from Srinagar and across Jammu and Kashmir on one platform. We have called the women who have a strong voice. We hope that their participation will solve the problems we are facing, he said. (KNS)
