Srinagar, Sept 06: National Conference (NC) Chief Spokesperson, Tanvir Sadiq on Saturday said authorities should act firmly against “violations” related to the “misuse” of the national emblem and alleged irregularities in the Waqf Board’s functioning.
Addressing a press conference here, Sadiq, the MLA Zadibal, called for accountability while condemning the violence at the Hazratbal shrine.
Tanvir said the violence should not have occurred but added that it stemmed from a “poor judgment” that hurt religious sentiments. He said the party had never supported such acts. “The sequence of events at the Hazratbal shrine is unfortunate. Violence has not been accepted by the National Conference, nor has it ever been supported,” he said.
The NC spokesperson said that religious sites had never seen the use of the national emblem on foundation stones and questioned whether the Vice-Chairman was above the law. “In this country and in this state, whenever you have seen the foundation stones, no matter who they are, whether top leaders of the country or the state, they have never used the national emblem on the foundation stone,” he said.
Tanvir said the use of the emblem violated the State Emblem Act, 2005, which prohibits such use without government permission. “Using it on a foundation in a religious place amounts to improper use under section 3 of the Act. The law is against it and its use is also against it,” he said.
He further said that the party’s MLAs demanded the immediate dismissal of the Vice-Chairman of the Waqf Board. “The MLAs of this party demand that the office be dismissed immediately. We demand the immediate dismissal of the Vice-Chairman of Waqf. Because it is a violation of the law, action should be taken against it,” he said.
The NC Chief spokesperson also announced that the party would write to the Speaker to request the formation of a House Committee to investigate the alleged irregularities in Waqf operations across J&K since 2019.
The MLA Zadibal further said that misuse of the emblem was a punishable violation, citing a PIL filed in the Orissa High Court last year.
“We demand that the police take action on the misuse and violation and on the incident that took place yesterday. The threat of PSA shows that these people only want to intimidate and do hooliganism,” he said. “The biggest regret is that religious sentiments have been hurt.”
He further criticised attempts to portray Kashmiris as terrorists over the incident. “To make the whole of Kashmir a terrorist and to tell them that they are terrorists because religious sentiments have been hurt is wrong,” he said. “The Vice-Chairman must apologise to the people for intimidating them and breaking the sanctity of a religious place.”
