According to reports, funerals in Kashmir have ended quietly, and street violence has been eradicated.
July 27: In Srinagar. Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha of Jammu and Kashmir said on Thursday that Srinagar’s Muharram parade had gone off without incident for the first time in more than 30 years.
For the first time in 30 years, the LG stated, a Muharram (8th) procession was held peacefully in Srinagar, and he made the announcement while speaking at the National Convention on Sufism: “a bridge between the communities” at the SKICC here. “Feeling satisfied, mourners are now returning to their homes,” the LG was quoted as saying by the KNO news agency.
Importantly, the UT government sanctioned the 8th Muharram procession along Srinagar’s traditional pathways for the first time in over 30 years. The mourners were given many layers of protection to ensure the safety of the march. Those in mourning gathered in the Guru Bazar district, made their way to Budshah Chowk, MA Road, and finally Dalgate.
The event was attended by high-ranking police officers and government officials. Many Shia leaders have publicly thanked the LG government for this landmark action.
The LG went on to say that the shutdown calls of the past caused a lot of suffering, but that street violence is now nonexistent in Kashmir. Once commonplace street violence has disappeared in Kashmir. People were the ones who suffered the most during the shutdown calls, he added, but now peace has prevailed and people may breathe easy.
He said that Kashmir’s varied cultures and Sufism are other reasons for the region’s fame. He said, “Valley is the country of Sufis and the heart of Sufism. The LG said that it has been a longstanding custom in Kashmir to show tolerance for all faiths and cultures. If Islam is milk, then Hinduism must be sugar, the LG said. That “treating everyone equally” is “the real Sufism and its message,” he said.
He said that Kashmir is unparalleled as a symbol of religious tolerance and unity throughout the globe. “Sufism helps break down barriers of religion, caste, and sex,” he stated.
He said that today was a peaceful day in Kashmir. The absence of war is a prerequisite for progress. The LG emphasised that growth is impossible without peace.
Governor of Kerala Arif Muhammad Khan, who was there, said that Saint Sheikhul Alam’s (RA) teachings are so widely followed that “he is known as Sheikh-ul-Alam not Sheikh-ul-Kashmir.” He remarked, “If you want to know what Sufism is all about, then follow the teachings of this great saint.”
