The Jammu and Kashmir administration has declared one of south Kashmir’s biggest educational seminaries, Siraj-ul-Uloom, an unlawful entity under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), accusing it of having “covert linkages” with banned outfit, Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI), “serious legal, administrative and financial irregularities” and of fostering “an environment conducive to radicalisation”.
Siraj-ul-Uloom is the first seminary to be declared unlawful in J&K. The move comes days after the administration took over 58 schools “affiliated” to the Falah-e-Aam Trust (FAT).
“In exercise of the powers conferred under Section 8(1) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, I, Anshul Garg, IAS, Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, hereby notify Darul Uloom Jamia Siraj-ul-Uloom, Imam Sahib, Shopian, as an Unlawful Entity/Place Under UA(P)Act, 1967,” reads the order. Section 8(1) of the UAPA empowers the Divisional Commissioner to notify any place that is used for the purposes of an unlawful association, thereby enabling consequential action, including sealing of premises and freezing of financial assets by competent authorities.
The order said the decision to declare Siraj-ul-Uloom an unlawful entity was taken following a report from the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Shopian.
“The records so produced have been carefully examined and duly considered; and upon perusal of the material on record, it has emerged that the said institution, though ostensibly functioning as a religious educational establishment, is marred by serious legal, administrative, and financial irregularities, including questionable land acquisition, lack of mandatory registration with competent authorities, and deliberate attempts to evade statutory oversight,” the order reads, adding, “Credible inputs and evidence on record further indicate sustained and covert linkages of the institution with Jamaat-e-Islami (Jel)… including continued de facto control by individuals affiliated with the said organisation and their placement in key administrative and academic positions.”
The order further said that the report also “reflects financial opacity, suspicious handling of institutional funds, and changes in financial control structures”, which has raised apprehensions regarding diversion and misuse of funds.
“Reports further indicate that the institution, over a period of time, has fostered an environment conducive to radicalisation, with a number of its former students having been found involved in militant activities and acts prejudicial to national security, thereby suggesting misuse of the institution for purposes detrimental to the sovereignty and integrity of the nation,” the order said.
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It concluded that “cumulative facts and circumstances, supported by intelligence inputs and field verification, provide sufficient grounds to reasonably believe that the premises of the said institution are being used for the purposes of an unlawful association”.
According to the order, the seminary was given an opportunity to explain its position, but the objections submitted by the institute were “misconceived, factually untenable, and devoid of legal merit”.
“The Chairman of the Institution has filed objections and in order to decide the matter on merits, comments were sought from the Sr. Superintendent of Police, Shopian… wherein it has been reported that the objections submitted by the Chairman of the institution/trust are misconceived, factually untenable, and devoid of legal merit, and that the present proceedings, being preventive in character, are aimed at curbing misuse of the premises for unlawful activities and do not require proof beyond reasonable doubt as mandated in criminal trials,” the order reads.
It also alleged that the institution was “aware of such activities and failed to take adequate steps to prevent misuse of its premises, thereby rendering it liable for action under the applicable provisions of law”.
Seminary-run school
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One of the biggest seminaries of south Kashmir, Siraj-ul-Uloom also runs a school that imparts both religious and modern education. The school, which teaches students up to class 12, is recognised by the Jammu and Kashmir Board of School Education. It was established in 1998 after a local religious leader, Peer Gull Mohammad Sofi, donated six hectares of land. While some members of the institute were affiliated with the banned Jamat-e-Islami, the school is run by a separate body under the Siraj-ul-Uloom Educational Trust.
The school first came under the police radar in 2019, when one of its former students was found involved in the car bomb blast at Lethpora. According to security forces, the former student, Sajad Ahmad, had provided the car for the blast that killed 40 paramilitary personnel.
In 2020, the then Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kashmir, Vijay Kumar, had said that three teachers of the seminary have been booked under the Public Safety Act and that some other teachers are under surveillance. Kumar had said that the school teachers under surveillance have been warned under section 107 of the CrPC.
