EU ministers criticise Turkey over Hagia Sophia
Brussels: European Union foreign ministers on Monday criticised Turkey for several reasons, including energy exploration in disputed Mediterranean waters and changing the status of Hagia Sophia from a museum to a mosque.
For their first face-to-face meeting in months, the ministers were planning to discuss taking a tougher stand on Ankara though no immediate measures were expected.
When I see now what is happening with Hagia Sophia, that is a blow," Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn said.
Hagia Sophia was originally built in Istanbul as a Christian cathedral, and the pope and others have expressed their sadness and criticism of the move by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell was in Turkey last week where he also discussed Ankara's disputes with Greece and Cyprus over energy exploration in the eastern Mediterranean region. Turkey has dispatched warship-escorted vessels to drill for gas in an area where Cyprus insists it has exclusive rights.
The Turkish government has said it's acting to protect its interests in the area's natural resources and those of Turkish Cypriots.
Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde said that the movements in the Mediterranean were a reason for worrying" for the 27-nation bloc, but insisted that human rights and democracy issues would also be taken up during the regular monthly meeting.
Borrell said that relations were not especially good at that moment.
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Flagrant injustice to underprivileged: Mehbooba on govt action against Shopian school
Srinagar (PTI): PDP president Mehbooba Mufti on Monday said declaring Dar Ul Uloom Jamia Siraj Ul Uloom in Jammu and Kashmir's Shopian an unlawful entity under the UAPA was a "flagrant injustice" to the underprivileged sections of society.
She also alleged that banning such "altruistic institutions" without any solid evidence of anti-national activity "shows a deep seated prejudice and ill intention".
The institution allegedly run by individuals affiliated with a banned organisation has been declared an "unlawful entity" under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
In a post on X, Mehbooba said, "Every single day the j&k government acts as a mute bystander & a timid enabler of vicious assaults on J&Ks identity & dignity. Declaring Dar Ul Uloom Jamia Siraj Ul Uloom as an unlawful entity under UAPA is a flagrant injustice to the poor underprivileged sections of society".
The former chief minister said the institution served as a "beacon of quality education" for students unable to afford expensive schooling.
"It has produced reputed doctors and professionals who served this nation with dedication. Banning these altruistic institutions without any solid evidence of anti national activity shows a deep seated prejudice & ill intention," she added.
Divisional Commissioner Kashmir Anshul Garg issued a two-page order based on the dossier presented by Senior Superintendent of Police Shopian pointing towards the alleged illegal activities at Darul Uloom Jamia Sirajul Uloom at Imam Sahib in Shopian district in south Kashmir.
According to the order issued by Garg on April 24, there were "credible inputs and evidence on record, to indicate sustained and covert linkages of the institution with Jamaat-e-Islami, which the Government of India banned in 2019.
