Ahmedabad: Members of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), formed to assess the necessity of the Waqf Amendment Bill, visited Ahmedabad on Friday. During the visit, JPC members met with representatives of the Gujarat State Waqf Board as well as officials from the Gujarat government. It was reported that a heated exchange took place between Gujarat Minister of State for Home, Harsh Sanghvi, and AIMIM chief and Lok Sabha MP Asaduddin Owaisi, over various aspects of the Waqf Amendment.

In the meeting, the Gujarat government presented five examples to demonstrate how the current Waqf provisions are being misused by the Gujarat Waqf Board. They argued that the proposed amendments to the Act would promote equal opportunities and transparency for all.

The cases presented by the government, including those from Surat and Bharuch, highlighted instances of fraud being committed by exploiting the current Waqf Act. In Gujarat, approximately 40,000 properties are registered under the Waqf Board, with many still involved in legal disputes.

Case Examples Presented by the Gujarat Government

1. Surat Municipal Corporation Building: This building has been used by the Surat Municipal Corporation since 1867 (over 150 years). Abdullah Jarullah filed an application with the Waqf Board on April 13, 2015, and May 16, 2015, to register the property as Waqf. The Waqf Board registered the building based solely on this application, without sufficient documentary evidence.

2. Forest Land of Tala Village on the Dahod-Godhra Highway: Land from survey numbers 45 to 91 in Tala village was designated as reserved forest in the official gazette on June 14, 1894, and later declared a protected forest by the Central Government. Despite its protected status, a mutawalli named Farooq Ahmad Hussain Patel carried out illegal construction for a dargah on this land. On November 19, 1953, this illegal construction was registered in the Property Title Register (PTR) under the name of Ghata Peer Dargah.

3. BK Cinema Building, Mehsana: The trustees of Mehsana Kasba Masjid and the cemetery trust filed a suit before the Waqf Tribunal, claiming that BK Cinema in Mehsana was allotted to them in 1917-1918 by Raja Varsod Zorawarsingh Surajsingh for the dargah and cemetery. Following the Waqf Act of 1995, this land was registered as the property of the trust. However, the land had already been handed over to the government in 1955 and later allotted to Shri Bhogilal Patel, who used it as a theatre. The trust has now sought a declaration from the tribunal that the property is Waqf.

4. Private Land in Vadu Village, Padra Taluka, Vadodara: Patel Manjibhai Nanjibhai purchased agricultural land bearing survey number 1022 through a registered sale deed in Vadu village, Padra taluka. He carried out agricultural activities on the land, which was granted non-agricultural (NA) status in 1979. The Waqf Board declared the land as Waqf property without issuing notice or providing an opportunity for a hearing. Subsequently, the land was registered as Waqf property in the Waqf Board’s register.

5. Forgery of Documents: A case has been registered against the Jatali Trust and Waqf employees for tampering with Waqf regulations, manipulating records, and issuing fake orders from the Board. Using forged documents, the accused sold Waqf property for personal gain. Six offenses have been registered at the B Division police station in Ankleshwar under sections 465, 467, 468, 471, 120 (B), and 82 (A, B, C, D) of the IPC, with the trustees of the Jatali Masjid as the accused. DeshGujarat