A video clip of the Grand Mufti of Kashmir enjoying Kashmiri ghazals, musical poems and Punjabi folk tunes, has gone viral on YouTube this week, after it was revealed that it was the same man who branded muslic as “un-Islamic.”

Bashiruddin Ahmad was recently filmed in a houseboat on the scenic Dal Lake, in the company of several other people, including women, according to India Today.

Political figures and commenters accused the Grand Mufti of hypocrisy following his earlier condemnation of an all-girl rock group.

"The doublespeak of the Mufti of Jammu and Kashmir is exposed, on the issue of music being un-Islamic," said Digvijaya Singh, general secretary of India's ruling Congress Party, was reported as saying in The Telegraph on Sunday.

In February 2013, the Grand Mufti released a fatwa declaring music un-Islamic.

"Singing is not in accordance with Islamic teachings. Society cannot be built or developed by doing un-Islamic acts like singing.” he said.

The fatwa was supported by Darul Uloom Deobandi seminary, one of the world's most influential centers of Islamic jurisprudence.

Activists supporting an all-girl group that was forced to disband due to intimidation following the Grand Mufti’s fatwa declared that Ahmad had made an error by denouncing singing but that she could not condemn his choice to attend a concert.

"It doesn't matter whether the so-called Grand Mufti listens to music or not. His statement was uncalled for. He should respect freedom of expression," she said.



Last Update: Wednesday, 20 May 2020 KSA 09:40 - GMT 06:40