Srinagar: National Conference president and Member of Parliament Dr. Farooq Abdullah Saturday condemned the UP Shia Central Waqf Board’s ex-chairperson, Syed Waseem Rizvi’s action of challenging the holy Quran and its chapters in the Supreme Court.
The Kashmir unit of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) said it has filed a complaint against Waseem Rizvi for hurting the sentiments of Muslim community by speaking against the holy Quran.
Terming the act abominable, Farooq Abdullah he said the holy Quran is the incorruptible and unchangeable word of Allah. “Almighty has taken the responsibility to protect the holy Quran and not even a letter or punctuation in it will change. It is the incorruptible and unchangeable word of Almighty Allah,” he said.
“The petition (filed by Rizvi in the apex court) should not be entertained; on the contrary strict action should be taken against him for hurting the sentiments of Muslims living across the globe. Such monstrous and despicable plots are aimed to hurt the dignity and unity of Muslim Ummah.
“I urge the judiciary to take suo moto cognizance of the nefarious designs of the petitioner under the relevant provisions of law for deliberately and maliciously hurting the sentiments of Muslims across the globe,” he said.
Other NC leaders including Ali Mohammad Sagar, Dr Sheikh Mustufa Kamal, Nasir Aslam Wani, Muhammad Akbar Lone, Hasnain Masoodi, Mian Alaf Ahmed, Muhammad Shafi Uri, Sharief Ud Din Shariq, Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi, Aga Mehmood, Tanvir Sadiq, and Imran Nabi Dar have also condemned Wasim Rizvi’s abominable act and impressed upon the government to take him to task for disturbing peace and amity in the country.
Local news agency KNO quoted the BJP’s IT Cell In-charge for Kashmir province, Manzoor Bhat as saying that they have filed a complaint at the office of Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Srinagar against Rizvi for his anti-Quran remarks.
He said the party will ensure strict action against those who are involved in hurting the religious sentiments of any community and nobody will be allowed to speak against any community or their holy book. The party has sought registration of case against Rizvi.
“We have filed a complaint and want the accused to be dealt with strictly so that no one is allowed to interfere or make the remarks that would hurt the sentiments of any particular community,” Bhat said while appealing the people to maintain communal harmony as displayed from time to time.
Meanwhile today, a group of people assembled at the Press Enclave here and held a peaceful protest against Rizvi, while demanding dismissal of his petition.
Pertinently, Rizvi, who often remains in news for his controversial statements, has yet again stoked a controversy by filing a petition in the Supreme Court seeking removal of at 26 verses from the holy Quran, which he alleges “have been inserted in the Quran to provoke violence and promote terrorism and Jihad.”
The angry protesters urged the top court to dismiss the petition and pass stricture against Rizvi for hurting religious sentiments of Muslims. They claimed that Rizvi’s move was aimed at to incite communal discord between Shia and Sunni Muslim communities.
“We appeal to the Supreme Court to outrightly reject the plea seeking removal of holy verses of the holy Quran by Waseem Rizvi and also pass stricture against him for hurting religious sentiments of billions of Muslims. We don’t consider him as Muslim, one who challenges authenticity of holy Quran cannot be the follower of Imam Ali (A.S),” they said.
The protesters also appealed to the government to immediately arrest Rizvi to satisfy the “collective conscience” of Muslims whose religious sentiments stand deeply wounded by his controversial remarks.
