Mirwaiz Umar Farooq: 'Violence Thrives Where Dialogue Is Absent'

When I stepped onto the pulpit of Srinagar라이브 바카라 Jama Masjid this Friday, it was a moment filled with sorrow and reflection. The day coincided with the Islamic date marking the martyrdom of my father, Shaheed Mirwaiz Molvi Mohammad Farooq, who thirty-six years ago fell to the bullets of assassins for standing for peace, dialogue and resolution. As someone who has personally suffered the pain of losing a parent at the young age of 16, the horrifying carnage in Pahalgam touched me deeply.

It had been over a month since I was last allowed to enter Jama Masjid. Repeated restrictions by authorities on prayers and sermons—they wound the spirit of a community that seeks guidance from its sacred spaces. Yet despite these obstacles, when I returned on Friday, my heart was burdened more by the grief that has deeply touched us all.

In Pahalgam, more than two dozen innocent lives were brutally snatched away, gunned down after being singled out by their identities. The gruesomeness of the act is beyond words. As a sufferer of violence, I say this with conviction: there can never be any justification for such atrocity. Innocent blood spilled anywhere is a wound on the collective conscience of humanity.

Being in the throes of suffering and violence for decades, yet in the midst of this horror, the people of Kashmir upheld their centuries-old tradition of compassion.

Locals rushed to save the wounded, carrying injured tourists across treacherous paths to hospitals. Homes were opened, food and shelter freely given. One young man, Adil Hussain Shah, laid down his life while helping tourists escape to safety. His sacrifice reminds us—and the world—of the true spirit of Kashmir: one rooted in humanity, courage, and selflessness.

In the aftermath, while the people stood together in grief, it was distressing to witness the crackdown that followed; indiscriminate arrests of thousands and the demolition of homes have caused great concern and added to the pain. While it is imperative to bring the perpetrators of this heinous crime to justice, innocent Kashmiris must not be made to suffer in the process. Justice must not come at the cost of fairness and due process of law.

Across the Valley, people mourned with silent prayers and spontaneous vigils. In every way, they sent a strong and clear message: we completely reject such violence. We grieve with the victims and stand in solidarity with their families.

Sadly, even as Kashmiris displayed such humanity, sections of the media chose to vilify us. Reckless narratives endangered Kashmiri students and professionals across India, forcing many to flee in fear.

Moments like this demand more than condemnation; they call for dialogue, for healing. They call for bridges to be rebuilt where walls have been raised. They call for solutions to be found based on wisdom and fairness. Through the pulpit of Jama Masjid and in all my efforts, I have consistently said that the Kashmir conflict must be addressed with compassion, not with brute force .Whether it is the pain of Kashmiris or the displacement of Kashmiri Pandits or the grief of thousands of families whose loved ones are in detentions and jails, these are human tragedies that demand humane solutions—based on trust, dignity, and reconciliation.

We must engage, we must listen, we must bridge the gaps that years of conflict have widened. Violence thrives where dialogue is absent. Healing begins when we listen, truly listen, with open hearts.

As I reflect on these painful days, I find hope in the resilience of our people. Despite the grief and the injustices, the spirit of Kashmir endures—in compassion, in courage, in humanity.

May Allah grant patience to the bereaved, healing to the injured, and wisdom to us all. May we find the strength to replace fear with understanding, anger with compassion, and despair with hope. And may the call from Jama Masjid always remain a call for justice, peace, and humanity.

(This is a slightly modified version of the sermon I delivered from the pulpit of Jama Masjid on Friday, April 25, 2025.)

Mirwaiz Umar Farooq is Kashmir라이브 바카라 chief cleric and moderate Hurriyat Conference chairman

This article is part of 바카라라이브 바카라 May 11, 2025 issue, covering the Pahalgam terror attack and the old wounds it has reopened. It appeared in print as ‘Violence Thrives Where Dialogue Is Absent’.