SRINAGAR: Thousands of devotees assembled at the historic Jamia Masjid on Friday to offer Jumat-ul-Vida prayers, marking the first such congregation at the mosque in seven years.
Worshippers from different parts of Srinagar and adjoining areas participated in large numbers in the last Friday prayers of the holy month of Ramadan, leading to a significant turnout at the old city shrine.
To ensure smooth conduct of the prayers, authorities had made elaborate security arrangements, deploying personnel at several locations and regulating movement in and around the area to manage the crowd.
Despite the security measures, the prayers concluded peacefully, with many worshippers terming the occasion as historic and long-awaited.
Meanwhile, Mirwaiz-e-Kashmir Umar Farooq alleged that he was confined to his residence and prevented from delivering the sermon. In a post on X, he claimed that he had been placed under house arrest for the third consecutive Friday during Ramadhan without any formal written order.
For the third consecutive Friday in Ramzan I have been put under arbitrary house arrest-never conveyed in writing, but enforced by placing police vehicles and large contingents in front of my gate and the entire area, chocking gully points and lanes with concertina wires,… pic.twitter.com/90m78aSmBC
— Mirwaiz Umar Farooq (@MirwaizKashmir) March 20, 2026
He said police personnel were deployed in large numbers outside his residence, with barricades and concertina wires restricting access and movement in the area.
Farooq criticised the restrictions, stating they were intended to stop him from addressing the congregation at the Jamia Masjid, and asserted that such measures could neither “erase identity nor weaken faith”.
Jumat-ul-Vida, the final Friday of Ramadan, was observed across Kashmir with religious fervour, as mosques and shrines witnessed large congregations and sermons marking the occasion.
