In a long period of history, Indian Muslims, in order to fulfil their religious and community needs and keeping in mind public welfare and Allah’s pleasure, donated and gave away their lands and properties. It is said that if Muslim waqf lands in the country be taken care of and assured safety, innumerable educational, economic and other problems of Muslims can be solved fairly amicably. However, the waqf properties instead of being a source of solving the problems, themselves have been entangled in the cobweb of problems. The waqf properties, worth millions of rupees, have become a victim of not only some individuals, but also of central and state governments, who have been planning and plotting to keep them under their adverse possession.
Jamaat-e-Islami Hind has always given importance to protection of waqf properties and in order to create an environment of better administration of these properties, it has started filing RTIs to get information regarding the state of waqf properties in the various parts of the country. However the information received so far portrays a sordid picture. The governments, which are supposed to safeguard waqf properties, have themselves taken criminal measures to illegally occupy waqf properties. There would be hardly any State government that has not been involved in this illegal activity. The Government of Uttar Pradesh is not lagging behind other state governments in occupying Muslim waqf lands illegally.
According to information provided by UP Sunni Central Waqf Board on Jan 12, 2012, in response to an RTI filed by this scribe, the Government of Uttar Pradesh has kept 32 waqf properties under its adverse possession. The ravage done to the Shia Waqf properties would be another story and its information should be sought from the Shia Waqf Board. The details of UP Government’s adverse possession of waqf lands as per area are as follows:
Lucknow : 12 Waqf Properties
Itawah : 4 Waqf Properties
Knapur : 3 Waqf Properties
Varanasi : 3 Waqf Properties
The state government is adversely possessing one waqf property each in Meerut, Hapur, Ghaziabad, Noida, Moradabad, Shahjahanpur, Muzaffarnagar, Badaun, Etah and Deoria. Regarding five properties the UP Sunni Waqf Board does not have any mention of the year in which they were taken under adverse possession by the State. However, other details provided by the Waqf Board say that the Custodian started adverse possession of waqf lands by illegally occupying waqf properties of Badaun in 1958.
The year-wise details of adverse possession of waqf properties are as follows:
1970: 1 property
1975: 1 property
1976: 4 properties
1978: 2 properties
1979: 1 property
1980: 1 property
1981: 3 properties
1982: 1 property
1983: 1 property
1984: 4 properties
1985: 3 properties
1986: 3 properties
1987: 1 property
After 1987 either there has been no adverse possession of waqf lands or the Board has not provided information thereof. Adverse possession of waqf properties by individuals is another chapter of the issue.
These details point to the fact that during 1975-76, when the country was under Emergency and the atmosphere of suppression and cruelty was prevalent, the UP government took five waqf properties under its adverse possession. After Emergency the maximum number of adverse possession of waqf lands by the UP government occurred in 1981, 1984, 1985 and 1986 and this continued till 1987. It is also important to bring into light the names of the chief ministers under whom the adverse possession of waqf properties went in full swing:
Chief Minister Sampurnanand (Congress) : 1 Property
Chief Minister Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna (Congress) : 5 Properties
Chief Minister Ram Naresh Yadav (Janta Party) : 2 Properties
Chief Minister Banarasi Das (Janta Party) : 1 Property
Chief Minister VP Singh (Congress) : 5 Properties
Chief Minister Sripati Mishra (Congress) : 4 Properties
Chief Minister Narayan Dutt Tiwari (Congress) : 3 Properties
Chief Minister Vir Bahadur Singh (Congress) : 7 Properties
This means the maximum number of adverse possession was taken during the period of Congress Party’s Chief Minister Vir Bahadur Singh and then come Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna and VP Singh. Following it comes Sripati Mishra, who again belongs to Congress.
Then comes Ram Naresh Yadav of Janta Party, under whose regime two properties were occupied. The times of other chief ministers were also not in favour of waqf. During the tenure of some chief ministers there were no adverse possession of waqf properties, however those occupying the lands illegally were also not brought to book, nor was any step taken to ensure safety to waqf lands. Bringing the facts of adverse possession of waqf properties occurred since Independence into light, is also an important issue. The facts would bring into light whether or not individual adverse possessions of waqf properties have taken place under the tenure of those chief ministers during which no State possession of waqf properties took place. And if the individual possessions have taken place then what their number is. Records should also contain the chairmen of the Waqf Board under whose chairmanship the adverse possession took place and what steps the Waqf Board took in order to reclaim the lands and properties; and if not then why.
Keeping mum over the utterly disgusting adverse possession of waqf lands would only aggravate the oppressions that the waqf is facing. Hence the call of the hour is that all Muslim organisations and groups of state, Muslim political parties, Muslim political leaders and other Muslim personalities should at least now rise to ensure safety and protection to waqf properties.
Along with other issues of the state, protection of waqf properties of the state should also be made an issue during the upcoming assembly elections in order to give momentum to the issue. The demand of considering the protection of waqf lands should be made to every political party. Those standing as candidates for the elections should be approached and asked to clarify their stand on this vital issue. The candidates who do not come out clearly on the issue of adverse possession of waqf properties and do not promise to help reclaim such properties from their illegal owners should not be considered for voting.
When a party will come to power after elections, then people should constantly seek from the Members of Assembly to put an end to adverse possession of waqf properties. General public should also be educated about this injustice being done to waqf and its properties through public gatherings and other public meetings.
A continuous pressure should also be put on the UP Waqf Board in order to ensure security and protection of waqf properties and no sigh of relief should be taken until all waqf properties are taken back. In this work only joint efforts of Muslim organisations and groups, important personalities and general public can Insha Allah ensure success.
[Translated from Urdu by Kamran Shahid Ansari]