Muslims in restive Indian Kashmir offered special prayers on Friday for slain Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden who was killed by US commandos earlier in the week.
The prayers for bin Laden were held at dozens of mosques in Indian Kashmir, where Kashmiris have been fighting India’s rule for over two decades, police and witnesses said.
Thousands attended the call for prayers which had been issued by Syed Ali Shah Geelani.
“Muslims across the globe are like brothers to each other and are bound to pray for a deceased Muslim,” Geelani, 82, told around 600 worshippers at one of the prayer sessions held in the main city of Srinagar.
“It is a religious obligation of which fulfilment is our collective duty,” he said.
Geelani also condemned the sea burial given to bin Laden, saying “it belied respect for any kind of values.
“After death, animosities vanish between enemies and everyone has a right to get a decent burial according to the tenets of his religion,” he said.
Geelani termed bin Laden a “martyr” and praised him for giving up a “life of comfort to fight against US oppression”.
No prayers for bin Laden were held at the main Jamia Masjid and Hazratbal shrine in Srinagar, where thousands of devotees traditionally gather on Fridays for the biggest congregations in Kashmir.
Jamia Masjid, the grand old mosque in the city’s centre, is controlled by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq while authorities have foiled all attempts by separatists to take control of the Hazratbal shrine.
Police reported a minor clash between pro-independence youths and security forces in a corner of the city but said elsewhere remained peaceful on Friday.
Reacting to the Geelani’s call for prayers for bin Laden, Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said the separatist leader was out of touch with the feelings of Kashmiris.
