Mirwaiz Umar Farooq Denounces Government Employee Dismissals and Book Seizures

Mirwaiz Umar Farooq criticized the dismissal of three employees by the lieutenant governor, questioning if there's an agenda to remove Kashmiris from government roles. He also condemned the seizure of books by Islamic scholar Abul A'ala Maududi, calling it an absurd form of policing thought.

Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, the Hurriyat Conference chairman, has voiced strong opposition to the dismissal of three government employees by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, questioning if the move is part of a broader strategy to eliminate Kashmiri presence in government positions.

Earlier, on the same day, Lt Governor Sinha invoked Article 311 (2) (c) of the Indian Constitution to terminate the services of a jailed policeman and two others, citing their verified terror links following investigations by law enforcement and intelligence agencies.

In addition to condemning the terminations, Mirwaiz criticizes the seizure of over 600 books by Islamic scholar Abul A'ala Maududi from bookstores, arguing that censorship in an era of digital information access is unreasonable.

(With inputs from agencies.)