Congress Working Committee member and former Member Parliament Tariq Hameed Karra in a statement today strongly opposed the decision of Waqf board to close down Srinagar’s Eid gah for congregational prayers and dedicate the place to a Cancer hospital.
In a statement issued to Kashmir News Service (KNS), Karra said that the land for Eidgah in Srinagar was purchased by Persian saint Mir Mohammad Hamdani in the 15th century and later dedicated it to the public for offering congregational Eid prayers.
“Later many eminent scholars and saints have delivered their sermons here such as Sheikh ul Aalam and Sheikh Hamza Makhdoom. Thus for Kashmiris, this place is holy and holds their historical, cultural and spiritual heritage.
Karra further said though the decision of constructing a hospital exclusively for cancer ailments is a welcome step that does not mean it should be done at the cost of closing down age-old Eidgah which is tantamount to hurting religious sentiments and in a way amounting to religious ingression,” he said.
Karra demanded that the cancer hospital should come up somewhere outside city limits having more land than identified at Eidgah for other allied facilities like housing the attendants etc.
“Waqf board has huge chunks of land on the peripheries of Srinagar city. Such hospitals within city limits could prove catastrophic, thus environmental aspects for such hospitals should be a paramount consideration,” the statement added. (KNS)