Decode Politics: Why J&K’s Ramzan moon-sighting is caught between Pakistan, a new committee

A newly formed committee is to announce the start of the month of Ramadan in the two Union territories of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh, on Monday evening.

The panel was formed after the controversy last year, when on March 23, 2023, Mufti Nasir-ul-Islam, considered among the foremost Muslim religious scholars in Kashmir, announced that the crescent moon signalling the beginning of the holy month as per the Islamic lunar calendar had not been sighted, and that Ramzan would begin a day later.

However, the same night, Radio Pakistan, the national public radio broadcaster of Pakistan, had announced the sighting of the moon — and the faithful chose to go by Radio Pakistan’s directive, and started their Ramzan fasts.

Why was Radio Pakistan’s announcement followed in 2023?

It was as per practice.

For decades, the house of the Grand Mufti, including Mufti Nasir’s father Mufti Bashir-ud-din Farooqi, followed the announcements of the Pakistan Ruet-e-Hilal or moon sighting committee to announce their decision on the beginning of Ramzan. The only exception was 2023.

Kashmir’s geographical proximity to Pakistan, as well as both the absence of an independent and technologically equipped moon-sighting committee in J&K as well as the rough weather conditions in Kashmir, meant moon-sighting was left to the Pakistan body.

Over the years, there has been talk of setting up an independent committee for J&K. After Mufti Nazir’s announcement was largely ignored last year, putting him in an awkward position, it was decided that J&K would set up a credible moon-sighting committee and disassociate the practice from Pakistan.

Right after the Ramzan season in 2023, Mufti Nasir announced that such a panel would make the call this year.

What has the