BARAMULLA, Feb. 11 -- Kunzer police in north Kashmir's Baramulla district have arrested eight people, including a carpenter, for constructing a structure resembling the holy Kaaba in Waripora village of Tangmarg. Videos had earlier surfaced showing the carpenter working on the rooftop of the structure.

The construction was reportedly commissioned by a man described as "mentally unwell," who had claimed to be a Sufi saint similar to Sheikh Nooruddin Wali (RA).

He urged people to visit his site if they were unable to travel to Saudi Arabia for Hajj or Umrah.

Following strong objections from religious scholars and clerics, including Jammu and Kashmir's Grand Mufti Nasir-ul-Islam, Maulana Ghulam Rasool Hami, and Maulana Mushtaq Ahmad Veeri...