The Jammu Kashmir admin has sealed the accounts of Khwaja Habibullah Nowshahri mosque in the Nowshehra area in Srinagar, triggering protests by the locals.
Speaking to The Kashmiriyat, locals said that the admin sealed the account over allegations of “misappropriation” of funds at the historical mosque named after the prominent Sufi cleric, Khwaja Habibullah Nowshahri.
An administrative official said that they had received complaints from the locals that the heads of the commitee were indulging in misusage of the funds received through donations.
“Initially Waqf board had received the complaint, but since the Khanqah is not under the domain of Waqf board, so we sought the intervention of the district administration who conducted an enquiry and froze the accounts affiliated to the Khanqah,” said the official of Waqf board.
The locals, however, denied that the heads of the Khanqah had misused the funds. “We have been asking the admin for nearly nine months to show us the copy of complaints, but they have not. It looks like a lie. All the residents know how much has the committee done for the Khanqah and the mosque. This looks like something bigger,” said the local resident.
He said that some vested interests have been putting their efforts to take over the Khanqah and the mosque and thus have been making false allegations to create ruckus in the area.