It is the first such meeting between political leaders from divergent ideologies with Mr. Ruhullah, a Shia cleric, and Mr. Farooq, a patron of the Muttahida Majlis-e-Ulema, coming together to discuss issues affecting Kashmir and Muslims
Hurriyat chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and National Conference (NC) Member of Parliament Aga Syed Ruhullah on Wednesday (January 29, 2025) met in New Delhi over the issues faced by people of J&K after abrogation of Article 370 and Muslims of the country in the wake of the government’s move to introduce the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) and the Waqf (Amendment) Bill.
MP Ruhullah met Mr. Farooq in Delhi and held an hour-long discussion. It’s the first such meeting between political leaders from divergent ideologies. The meeting between Mr. Ruhullah, also a Shia cleric, and Mr. Farooq, also a patron of the Muttahida Majlis-e-Ulema (MMU), which is a conglomerate of 40-plus Muslim bodies in J&K, is a significant political development given the contrary positions the separatists and the mainstream leaders in Kashmir had in the past 30 years.
“I had a detailed interaction with the Mirwaiz regarding the Waqf Bill. We have decided to approach Chandrababu Naidu and Nitish Kumar and other opposition MPs to express concerns of Muslims,” MP Ruhullah said. He said the Bill was aimed to supress the Muslims and make us second class citizens in the country,” he added.
Sources said the two leaders discussed new political scenarios emerging in J&K after the Centre abrogated Article 370 in 2019. The rare meeting between the Hurriyat leader and the NC MP also centred around the issues faced by Muslims, especially UCC and Waqf Bill. Besides, the two leaders also discussed the post-2019 situation in J&K and the truncated role of the elected government to deliver on the issues faced by people of J&K, sources said.
Mr. Farooq, who is currently in New Delhi, met the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill in New Delhi on January 24. He opposed the proposed amendments and submitted a six-point memorandum to the JPC. It’s the first such instance where a Hurriyat leader, seeking a settlement on the Kashmir issue, sought a meeting on the issues faced by Muslims in the country.
Earlier on January 26, Mr. Farooq, accompanied by Maulana Rehmatullah Qasimi of the Valley’s main seminary, Darul Uloom Raheemiya, met with Maulana Mehmood Madni, the President of Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind, on these issues.
Sources said efforts are underway for a meeting between Mr. Farooq and key allies of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) Chandrababu Naidu, head of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who heads the Janata Dal (Union), in New Delhi.
Sources privy to the development said a channel of communication is on between Mr. Farooq and the offices of Mr. Naidu and Mr. Kumar “to see a possibility of a meeting”, in a bid to apprise them about the concerns and fears of Muslims.
