Thousands of devotees assembled to observe annual Urs of Sufi saint Hazrat Sheikh Syed Abdul Qadir Jilani (RA) at his shrine here on Monday.
This was for the first time that authorities allowed largecongregation on a religious occasion in Kashmir post abrogation of Article 370of Constitution.
“Around 30,000 devotees paid obeisance at the shrine and had glimpse of the holy relic,” said Tariq Ahmad Kutoo, Supervisor, Dastgeer Sahib (RA) shrine.
He said there were no restrictions on Assembly of thedevotees. “The devotees from all the areas were allowed to visit the shrine andparticipate in the Urs,” he said.
The Urs celebrations which started earlier this month willconclude on coming Friday. As per Islamic calendar, the Urs begins on 1st dayof Rabi Al Thani during which special prayers are held every day from Asr toMagrib till 11th day of Rabi Al Thani. Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jeelani (RA), popularly known as Dastageer Sahib(RA), is the 11th century saint.
The biggest congregation was held at the Khanyar shrine. Therelic was displayed after every prayer there.
On the occasion speakers threw light on life of the Sufisaint. The shrine and its premises remained filled with the devotees throughoutthe day and the area reverberated with the holy verses.
The Khanyar market however did not wear festive look thisyear, unlike in the past, as most of the shops remained closed. But the vendorshad set up stalls.
Meanwhile, the congregational prayers were also observed atMasjid Sharief Dastgeer Sahib (RA) at Nowhamam, Sopore where devotees gatheredto have a glimpse of the holy relics of the revered saint.
Authorities had made all necessary arrangements for theconvenience of devotees including sanitation, drinking water, street lights andmedical first aid at the Khanyar shrine.
Earlier, authorities had curtailed celebrations ofEid-i-Milad-un Nabi (SAW) in Kashmir as no major Milad procession was allowedanywhere including Hazratbal shrine.
Authorities had also disallowed Khuj-Diggar in Downtown atthe Shrine of Naqashband Sahib (RA). It was first time in the history ofKashmir that Khuj-Diggar was disallowed.