"Dangerous and utterly reprehensible": Mehbooba Mufti slams BJP's over Hazratbal Dargah row

Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], September 18 (ANI): Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Thursday attacked the Centre over the house arrest of political leaders in the Valley. She accused the BJP of "weaponising the pain of people" and calling its approach "dangerous and utterly reprehensible."
Posting on X, Mehbooba Mufti wrote, The decision to place the political leadership under house arrest today, simply to stop us from visiting Sopore to offer condolences on the demise of Professor Abdul Gani Bhat, lays bare the harsh and undemocratic reality in Jammu and Kashmir."

The decision to place the political leadership under house arrest today, simply to stop us from visiting Sopore to offer condolences on the demise of Professor Abdul Gani Bhat, lays bare the harsh and undemocratic reality in Jammu and Kashmir.

What unfolded at Hazratbal Dargah… pic.twitter.com/M0BmZ276oM

— Mehbooba Mufti (@MehboobaMufti) September 18, 2025

She called the controversy at Hazratbal Dargah a result of deep-seated public resentment. She added, "What unfolded at Hazratbal Dargah, the eruption of spontaneous, raw public anger, was not just an isolated incident. It was a loud, unmistakable message from a people pushed to the edge. The BJP, however, remains willfully blind to this truth, refusing to learn anything from the deep anguish and suppressed emotions that have been building for years now."
Mufti accused the BJP of keeping Kashmir in a constant state of turmoil for political gains. "It is becoming increasingly clear that the BJP has no interest in peace or healing in Kashmir. Instead, they seem determined to keep the region in a constant state of turmoil, weaponising pain and unrest for political mileage across the rest of the country. This cynical approach is not just irresponsible; it is dangerous and utterly reprehensible," she said.
Earlier, a viral video showed a mob defacing the national emblem on a marble plaque at the shrine, citing that sculpting figures goes against Islamic ethos.
A controversy erupted at the revered Hazratbal Shrine in Srinagar when a mob vandalised the Ashoka Emblem on the foundation stone, sparking a heated debate about national symbols and religious sentiments.
Earlier, former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister and National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah on Sunday criticised the state's Waqf Board over the installation of a stone plaque that had the national emblem inscribed on it.
Speaking to reporters in Anantnag, Abdullah asserted that the concerned authorities shouldn't have installed the board at the Assar-e-Sharief Hazratbal.
"What happened in Hazratbal was wrong. They shouldn't have installed that board. My father and the people here in Habba Kadal were collecting funds for it. They reached a house where a woman had only a utensil. She gave the only thing in her possession. However, my father refused to accept it. She responded by saying, 'Sheikh sahab, I am not giving this to you. I am giving it for Nabi Kareem's Hazratbal dargah. If you don't take it, you will have to answer before Allah.' My father took the offering," Abdullah said.
The former CM said that the authorities made the mistake of installing the board, which compelled people to register their protest. (ANI)