Ideas

AURORA, Ill. — Alexandros Paporakis, 19, of Palatine, Illinois, was arrested Oct. 11 and charged with making a terrorist threat and unlawful weapons possession. Authorities believe he planned an attack on the Sri Venkateswara (Balaji) Hindu temple in Aurora, though police say the intended location is not confirmed. Prosecutors say he told coworkers he wanted to kill Indian people. They say he later reported that his rifle had jammed and sent an eight-page manifesto. Police recovered a rifle, ammunition and body armor from his home. The FBI is assisting. A judge ordered him held pending trial, and court papers mention mental-health issues. His public defender notes that the claims are only allegations. Aurora officials have contacted other area temples about security. No hate-crime count has been announced, and the case remains under investigation.

SRINAGAR — The Jammu and Kashmir Waqf Board, which manages Muslim endowments in Indian-administered Kashmir, convened about 1,500 scholars on Oct. 10. Attendees said they were told a committee would set uniform Friday sermon content for affiliated mosques. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah called the plan unacceptable and accused the BJP of interfering in Muslim religious affairs. The board is led by a BJP-affiliated chairperson, Darakhshan Andrabi, and sits under federal rather than elected-government control. Mirwaiz Umar Farooq's clerical coalition said sermon content belongs to scholars, not an administrative body. Andrabi had said the aim was to address problems such as drug abuse. She denied issuing any binding order, and she later said independent preachers would keep discretion over their sermons. The dispute revives complaints about state oversight of religious institutions since Kashmir lost its special status in 2019.