Srinagar: Anjuman Auqaf Jamia Masjid has strongly condemned the incident that took place in Jama Masjid late Friday afternoon.

“A group of masked boys entered the mosque and rushed to the pulpit when one among them stood atop the pulpit with his shoes on, screaming slogans and creating ruckus. In the meantime his associates videotaped it and the video has been put on social media. This clearly indicates that this incident was deliberate and planned.  It has naturally led to shock outrage and deep resentment among people and deeply hurt their sentiments associated with the mosque,” Jamia Auqaf said in a statement.

It added that the attempt to desecrate Jamia mosque by this lumpen group of hooligans whose identity is not known as yet as they hide behind masks, nor the identity of those is known on whose behest they are indulging in these shameful acts, is strongly condemnable.

“It shows utter disregard of this group of miscreants for Islamic institutions, values and Islamic teachings. Such elements not only malign the name of Islam but also abuse it.”

Anjuman has taken strong note of this shameful incident and warned the elements or agencies behind this incident that people and Auqaf will not tolerate or allow anyone to violate the sanctity of the mosque and the pulpit at any cost. Jama Masjid is the spiritual religious and political centre of the people of Kashmir and representative of our collective cultural heritage and any attempt to harm it will be dealt with firmly.