J&K: Owaisi Tries To Raise 'Cinema Hall Vs Mosque Debate; Srinagar Police Fact-Checks Him

AIMIM chief, Asaduddin Owaisi was fact-checked by the Srinagar Police on suggesting that the J&K government has been shutting down Jama Masjid in Srinagar every Friday.

He made the erroneous assertion in the wake of a cinema hall opening in the valley after three decades.

He tweeted, “Sir @manojsinha_ you have opened Cinema Halls in Shopian & Pulwama but why is Srinagar Jamia Masjid shut on every Friday at least don’t shut it during the afternoon matinee show.”

The Srinagar Police, quoting Owaisi’s tweet, chided the lawmaker for his ignorance and clarified that Jamia is fully opened.

Only on three occasions, post-Covid, Masjid was temporarily shut for Friday noon prayers owing to inputs of terror attack/law and order situation. This was after Jamia authorities failed to take responsibility for happenings inside, the police added.

With his tweet, Owaisi was attempting to draw false equivalence between cinema hall and mosque. However, timely reply by the police ensured that the faulty narrative does not fly.

On 18 September, Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha inaugurated a multipurpose cinema hall each in the twin south Kashmir districts of Pulwama and Shopian, almost three decades after theatre owners were forced to pull down the shutters by violent Islamists in the valley.

A number of theatres were burnt down as they were considered un-Islamic.

Though the theatres were uprooted, Jammu and Kashmir remained a favourite spot for filmmakers to shoot movies in the region. On the day of the inauguration of INOX's new multipurpose cinema hall, LG Sinha laid out the plan to build such halls in every district of J&K.

Kashmir's first multiplex in Srinagar's Somwar area will be thrown open to the public soon. It will have three movie theatres with a total capacity of 520 seats.

According to the LG, the new cinema halls will generate employment for locals and provide a vibrant space for training the youth and conducting seminars.

(with inputs from PTI)