Jalandhar, August 4: Muslims protested outside the office of Commissioner of Police here on Friday for not allowing them to complete their prayers during Ramzan days on a Waqf Board land in Gazi Gulla locality after Hindu residents of the locality had opposed their offering prayers at the site and building a mosque there on Thursday.
Even as the Muslims had started offering prayers with the advent of Ramzan some days back on Thursday they were not allowed on Thursday evening after residents of the locality had opposed and staged a dharna outside the site.
The talks on Thursday failed to resolve the issue even as Muslim leaders had offered that they should be allowed to continue the prayers during Ramzan and they would not build a mosque.
The Muslims descended on the district administration complex after the prayers in the afternoon and their leaders announced that they would handover keys of around 20 mosques to the police in protest against continuation of Ramzan prayers at the site.
They had even announced to hold the evening prayers in DAC. However after negotiations with the police they returned after submitting a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Sarabjit Singh and police told them that the issue would be sorted out in three days.
"We had offered that let the Ramzan prayers be continued at the site and we shall not construct a mosque and an alternate place would be looked for that. But even at this the other side was not ready," said Usman Qureshi, member of Punjab Waqf Board and member of Shiromani Akali Dal General Council.
Meanwhile, Hindu activists including those from Congress, BJP and some right wing organizations also started a dharna in the street where the site under controversy is located and started singing bhajans.
Commissioner of Police Gaurav Yadav said "we have asked the DC to clear the status of land according to revenue record," he said.
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