Parts of Srinagar erupted on Monday following a fire that broke out in 250-year-old Sufi Muslim shrine obliterating what was known as an epitome of Kashmiri architecture and a place of worship revered by other faiths also. An adjacent old mosque, also rich in ancient architecture, too was gutted while a newly constructed one and some other structures suffered damage in the devastating blaze.
However, ancient relics and handwritten copies of the holy Quran are safe as they were kept in fireproof almirahs, the custodian of the shrine said. “All relics, handwritten copies of the holy book and other taburukat (sacred articles attributed to the Sufi saint) are safe as they were kept in a fire-proof safe they remained unharmed,” chief custodian of the shrine Syed Khalid Hussein said.
Angry crowds soon took to the streets and clashed with police at a number of places, mainly in central Srinagar which were immediately placed under strict security restrictions under Section 144 Crpc. People were protesting against the failure of the authorities to cope with the situation effectively as most of the fire tenders arrived at the scene initially were without carrying water with them to douse the flames, witnesses said. Also, no fire safety arrangement was apparently in place.
More than eighty persons, including 35 police and fire services personnel, were injured in clashes, the police and hospital sources said. Inspector general of police Shiv Murari Sahai asked people to remain calm and not to pay any heed to rumours. “We’re ascertaining the cause of fire,” he said. The state government has ordered a fact finding enquiry by the divisional commissioner, Kashmir to go into the circumstances leading to the incident. The government has also ordered a fire safety audit of all major heritage shrine of Kashmir by an expert committee.
The angry crowds also smacked a visiting senior police officer and pushed around several other officials and reportedly stoned the cavalcade of a senior minister and ruling National Conference (NC) leader Ali Muhammad Sagar. Prominent separatist leader Syed Shabir Ahmed Shah too faced their wrath. He was thrashed, his clothes were torn off and his face was blackened with the ash of burned timber of the shrine. Mobs also pelted stones at nearby Khanyar police station. The police fired teargas canisters and swung bamboo sticks to disperse the stone pelting crowds, witnesses said.
Chief minister Omar Abdullah said, “The burning down of our revered shrine Dastagir Sahib is a tragedy that will take time to sink in.” He added, “The effort of some to create trouble from this is, however, reprehensible.” He announced that the Jammu and Kashmir Waqf Board “is committed to rebuilding the shrine quickly but right now cooler heads must prevail and the tragedy must not be exploited.”
The shrine stood in Srinagar’s Khanyar locality in memory of Abd al-Qadir al-Gilani, the 11th century Persian Islamic preacher who is buried in Baghdad, Iraq, but is highly esteemed by Sunni scholars all over the world and held in great veneration by the Muslims of the Indian subcontinent.
The saint is also known among followers in India and Pakistan as Ghaus-ul-Azam Dastagir.