In a significant development in the ongoing tensions surrounding religious literature in the Kashmir Valley, a group of independent candidates backed by Jamaat-e-Islami (JEI) condemned the recent police raids that resulted in the confiscation of books authored by prominent Islamic thinker Abul A’la Maududi. The condemnation came during a press conference held in Pulwama, where Chief Election Agent Shamim Ahmad Thoker voiced strong objections to the actions taken by law enforcement.
Thoker characterized the police operations as illegal, asserting that there are no current bans on the works of Maududi in India. He emphasized that these books are being published by a registered publisher based in Delhi, thereby questioning the justification for their seizure.
The controversy escalated following extensive search operations conducted by the Srinagar and Handwara district police few days back, which targeted several bookshops in sensitive areas including Srinagar, Kralgund, Villgam, and Qalamabad. Authorities reported that hundreds of religious literature books linked to Jamaat-e-Islami were confiscated.
The Jammu and Kashmir Police defended their actions, stating that the sellers had violated legal guidelines and warning of potential legal consequences for those involved in the distribution of these materials. In a statement released on social media platform X, the police confirmed the seizure of 668 books, claiming they were promoting the ideology of the banned Jamaat-e-Islami organization. Legal proceedings have been initiated under Section 126 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) 2023, which addresses issues related to maintaining public order.
The police’s initial raid took place in Srinagar’s Lal Chowk, a bustling commercial hub, where officers inspected bookstores and confiscated various written works, including those by Maududi and Amin Ahsan Islahi. Most of the seized literature was reportedly published by MMI Publishers, a Delhi-based firm established in 1948.
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