They said it was an attempt to control and regulate religious institutions through “coercive means and checks”. Such an unprecedented and invasive data-collection exercise has caused widespread anxiety among religious institutions, imams, khateebs and the public in general,” the conglomerate added. The outfit accused the administration of picking only Muslim religious institutions for such surveillance, making it even more suspect. Measures that single out mosques and religious personnel in this manner are unjustified, counterproductive and harmful to social harmony,” it said. Mehdi questioned the need for such surveillance when Jammu and Kashmir already has multiple layers of security.

Source: The Telegraph January 14, 2026 02:10 UTC