Srinagar: National Conference president Farooq Abdullah on Sunday said the recent controversy at the Hazratbal shrine could have been avoided if the current Jammu and Kashmir Waqf Board had not installed the Ashoka emblem plaque at the shrine dedicated to Prophet Muhammad.
“There was no need to put up the plaque. They installed it, and people did not accept it,” Abdullah told reporters in Anantnag, where he attended a condolence meeting.
Calling the installation a mistake, the former chief minister stressed that Hazratbal and other shrines were built through public contributions, not as favors from anyone.
“When Sher-e-Kashmir (Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah) oversaw its construction, he did not place any board on the shrine because it is dedicated to Allah and His Prophet,” he said.
Commenting on the FIR filed over the emblem’s vandalisation, Abdullah remarked, “They must realize that what they did was wrong. People will not tolerate such actions. We are a peace-loving community, and they need to acknowledge their mistake.”
