"Happy to share something very big with all of you. Inshallah I'll be leaving soon for the most important journey of my life. Before departing for Hajj, I would like to ask for everyone's forgiveness, be it fans, family, friends. Apologies for hurting anyone's sentiments. kindly keep me in your prayers
"Also I strongly condemn the violence and tyranny being conducted against the Kashmiris. May Allah bless lives of the innocent in Kashmir and all over the world." Atif tweeted on Tuesday.
The "Kuch is tarah" hitmaker's tweet did not go down well with netizens.
One user asked him not to interfere in India's internal matter.
"Aap hajj pr ja rahe hain hajj par jaye. Kashmirio ko koi saza nahi mil rahi koi zulm nhi ho raha. India ka part tha hai aur rahega. Aap apna desh dekhein, dusre desho me taka jhankí kake chaudhari na banein."
Another user commented: "What type of tyranny?? Can you please tell us... You don't have to worry about Kashmiris. They are in safe hands now. After reading this tweet, you lost many Indian fans including me. Disappointed."
A twitter user even bashed him for making "political statement" before leaving for Hajj.
"To add a political statement when you are going for such a spiritual journey is extremely sad. Assume you will find it difficult to sing for Indian films for a long time now," the user added.
( With inputs from IANS )