Terming it as Reckless and Humiliating as J&K Police Expand Surveillance Net Over Religious Institutions . In a move that marks an unprecedented escalation in the state’s surveillance architecture, the Jammu and Kashmir Police have launched a granular “mapping” of the region’s religious landscape. By circulating an intrusive, four-page proforma across the Valley’s mosques and madrassas, the administration has moved beyond tracking movement to tracking the very “DNA” of religious management.
The reaction from Srinagar has been one of visceral alarm. Iltija Mufti, a rising voice in the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), has spearheaded the dissent, branding the exercise a “reckless” act of high-handedness designed to humiliate and further isolate the Kashmiri people in their own backyards.
The 20-Point Personal Probe
The sheer depth of the information being sought has shocked civil society and religious leaders alike. The police are not merely asking for names they are demanding a digital and financial “strip-search” of imams, muezzins, and management committees.
Hardware & ID The forms require mobile phone models, IMEI numbers, Voter IDs, Aadhaar details, and Ration Card numbers.
Financial Footprints: In an extraordinary move, the police have sought details of ATM cards, credit cards, monthly earnings, and the specific expenditure of individuals associated with the mosques.
The Digital Shadow Respondents must disclose their social media handles, WhatsApp numbers, and the specific apps they use on their mobile devices.
Sectarian and Structural Mapping
For the first time in recent memory, the state is officially documenting the sectarian identity of every place of worship categorizing them as Barelvi, Hanafi, Deobandi, or Ahle-Hadith. The probe also digs into the physical and financial foundations of these institutions:
Land Status: Whether the mosque stands on state-owned land, private property (milkiyat), or community land (shamilaat).
Funding Flows: A complete audit of the “Bait-ul-Maal” (charity wings), including bank account details, monthly budgets, and the sources of construction funds.
The ‘White-Collar’ Justification
While the police have not released an official public statement, high level sources justify the drive as a necessary fallout of the November 2025 “White-Collar” terror bust. Investigations into that module allegedly revealed that radicalization was being funneled through seemingly routine religious and educational channels. The state’s logic is simple: to stop the next module, they must have a “360-degree” view of the people who command influence in the community. By mapping family trees, travel histories, and financial assets, the police aim to build a “firewall” against foreign-linked funding and logistical support for militancy.
Security vs. Sacrosanctity
To Iltija Mufti and groups like the Mutahida Majlis-e-Ulema (MMU), this isn’t security it’s an “invasion of the sacred.” Mufti has cautioned authorities that treating every religious functionary as a suspect only serves to breed deep-seated resentment. She argues that when the state probes the “IMEI numbers and credit cards” of an imam, it isn’t fighting terror it is dismantling the last remaining layers of Kashmiri dignity and privacy.
