Abid Bashir
Srinagar (NVI): Thieves broke into Kashmir’s revered shrine of Dastgeer Sahib at Khanyar area in Srinagar late last night and decamped with cash as devotees questioned the shrine management body over the incident.
Sajada Nisheen (management head) of the shrine, Khalid Hussain Geelani said that thieves entered the shrine in the dead of the night and stole cash. “I have no idea how much cash has been stolen from the (charity box),” he said.
It is pertinent to mention that the shrine houses the holy relic of Hazrat Sheikh Syed Abdul Qadir Jeelani, which is displayed for the devotees every year on the occasion of the annual Urs (anniversary) of the saint. The shrine is considered one of the holiest in Srinagar as it has an affiliation with the head of saints—(Syed Abdul Qadir) whose mausoleum is in Baghdad, Iraq.
Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Srinagar, Dr Haseeb Mughal said that police have taken cognizance of the incident and investigations are underway. “A case has been registered,” he said.
Srinagar Police station Kahnayar also shared a Facebook link of CCTV footage of the incident, on Twitter, and appealed to the public to identify the thief involved in the case.
*Police Station Khanyar Srinagar seeks help of general Public in identifying the thief involved in theft Case*
Srinagar, 13th September 2020https://t.co/9RruwzMMsO @JmuKmrPolice @KashmirPolice @DIGCKRSGR @PoliceSgr pic.twitter.com/T8bDOIP3NF
— SRINAGAR POLICE (@PoliceSgr) September 13, 2020
Local residents have questioned the shrine management, saying that after the security of the shrines was withdrawn last year, it was the sole responsibility of the shrine management body to take care of the revered places and prevent theft and fire-related incidents.
“Wasn’t there a night watchman,” said Abdur Rashid Khan, who has been a frequent visitor to the shrine for the past many decades, adding that it was the sole responsibility of shrine management since there is no security at shrines across Kashmir especially Srinagar since April 2019. Policemen deployed at the shrines for security purposes prior to April 2019 were without weapons and it was felt that there was a security risk after which police security from the majority of shrines was withdrawn.
Many women devotees who came Dastgeer Sahib shrine after coming to know of the theft expressed serious concern. “Shrine management is solely responsible for the theft. Thousands of people pay charity in lakhs in both cash and kind every year at the shrine. There should be accountability. Why shrine management is not able to hire two watchmen for night duty out of the charity money,” one of the devotees said.
-ARK
