Srinagar: A peaceful protest attended by hundreds of worshippers was held in the premises of Srinagar’s Jamia Masjid on Friday, June 23, to demand the release of moderate Hurriyat chairman and chief cleric of Kashmir, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq.According to witnesses, scores of worshippers assembled inside the mosque ahead of the Friday prayers and staged a peaceful protest seeking an unconditional release of Mirwaiz, who was put under house arrest days ahead of the reading down of Article 370 on August 5, 2019.Holding placards which read ‘200 Fridays. Pulpit of Jamia Masjid Silenced. Release Mirwaiz’, the worshippers, which comprised young and elderly, shouted slogans in favour of the moderate Hurriyat chairman while urging the government to set him free.A similar protest was held in the lawn of the mosque after the completion of the Friday prayers which was attended by women and children. The protesters shouted pro-Mirwaiz slogans while urging the government to set him free.Protests demanding the release of moderate Hurriyat chairman and chief cleric of Kashmir, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq at Srinagar’s Jamia Masjid on June 23, 2023. Photo: Special arrangement.“We only demand that our Mirwaiz should be released at the earliest. Our hearts will be at peace only when he is set free. We are not indulging in any fight. We only want the government to release him,” a woman protester, whose identity was not immediately confirmed, said.“Mirwaiz is under house arrest for more than four years. The pulpit has been silenced. We come here to offer prayers and he would lead us. As Eid will be celebrated next week, I appeal to the government to release him so that he can lead the prayers here,” said another protester.Addressing the worshippers, Ahmad Syed Naqshbandi, who leads Friday prayers at the 14th-century mosque in the absence of the Mirwaiz, urged the administration to “wake up” and release the chief cleric of Kashmir.Protests demanding the release of moderate Hurriyat chairman and chief cleric of Kashmir, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq at Srinagar’s Jamia Masjid on June 23, 2023. Photo: Special arrangement.A flex banner was put up inside the mosque alongside the large wooden chair from where Mirwaiz delivered Friday sermons. The banner read: ‘Silenced Pulpit. Release the Mirwaiz.’“Mirwaiz is the custodian of this pulpit, but he has been illegally put under house arrest,” Naqshbandi said, “We condemn this approach in harshest terms. We are hopeful that the authorities will wake up, not waste more time and release him at the earliest.”In a statement, Naqshbandi said that a delegation of prominent religious leaders and scholars in March this year had requested Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha for an appointment to “discuss the release” of the moderate Hurriyat chief and “other issues”.Protests demanding the release of moderate Hurriyat chairman and chief cleric of Kashmir, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq at Srinagar’s Jamia Masjid on June 23, 2023. Photo: Special arrangement.“While the authorities are thoughtful of the sentiments associated with the annual Amarnath yatra…, why are the sentiments of the Muslim community being ignored and hurt by keeping the Mirwaiz away from the Jama Masjid,” he asked.Since his house arrest in 2019, Mirwaiz has remained confined to his Nigeen residence in Srinagar, the access to which is “restricted and monitored” by security agencies while his passport has also been impounded years ago.In a statement, a Hurriyat spokesperson said that the Mirwaiz, one of the top separatist leaders in Kashmir, has completed 200 Friday under house arrest.“This is a cause of great anguish and dismay among the Muslims of J&K, many of who (sic) visit the mosque in large numbers on Friday to hear the Mirwaiz deliver the soulful and educative sermon,” the spokesperson said in a statement.The Hurriyat statement said that the house arrest of the Mirwaiz was “violation of the religious sentiments of the Muslims of J&K and the suspension of Mirwaiz’s fundamental human rights.”Mirwaiz was one of the few Hurriyat leaders who held talks with New Delhi after then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee said that the dialogue with Pakistan over Kashmir would be held “under the ambit of humanity”.Despite opposition by the Hurriyat hawks and huge personal losses, including the assassination of his father and uncle, and a grenade attack on his house, the moderate Hurriyat chief led the moderate Hurriyat in a composite dialogue process during which he met Vajpayee, former prime minister Manmohan Singh and former deputy prime minister L.K. Advani.The Hurriyat said that his house arrest “is a far cry from PM Modi’s big shout out to democracy and its values in his address to the US Congress just a day ago on his visit there”, the Hurriyat statement said, adding that the Mirwaiz has “always advocated and supported democratic values of peace, dialogue and tolerance as means for resolution of issues”.Anjuman Auqaf Jama Masjid (AAJM), the managing body of the historic mosque, also condemned the house arrest of the Mirwaiz, “The pain and anguish this religious repression on the Muslims of valley has caused them is extremely unfortunate. Despite repeated appeals for his release from all sections and quarters of J&K and outside the authorities have denied it so far.”