Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court has directed Forest Department officials not to interfere with the peaceful possession, administration and management of a mosque, madrasa and old-age home at Ananthagiri Hills in Vikarabad district without following due legal process, while making clear that its order cannot be used to justify encroachment on any Reserve Forest land.
Justice Surepalli Nanda passed the order on a petition filed by Mohammed Faiyaz Ali, the Mutawalli (person responsible for managing a Waqf institution) of the Sunni Masjid Osmania, Deeni Madarsa and Yousufain Old Age Home, a Waqf property spread over roughly 14,000 square yards.
‘Officials entered premises during Friday prayers’
He alleged that Forest Department officials had been interfering with the institution’s day-to-day functioning, including disrupting students’ educational activities, and that on July 17, officials entered the premises during Friday prayers, disrupted the congregation and orally directed worshippers to vacate. He argued this violated Articles 14, 25 and 26 of the Constitution.
The petitioner relied on Telangana State Waqf Board proceedings from June 2023 registering the institution as a Waqf under the Waqf Act, 1995, along with a Muntakhab (a formal Waqf property register entry) and a September 2023 gazette notification, to argue that its status was legally recognised and that the Forest Department’s actions were arbitrary and unlawful.
Forest Department denies allegations
The Forest Department denied the allegations, submitting written instructions from the Forest Range Officer, Vikarabad, dated July 30, stating that it had never interfered with the institution’s lawful possession or religious activities, nor attempted to dispossess the petitioner except in accordance with law.
It said any inspection was carried out solely to fulfil its statutory duty to protect Reserved Forest land from encroachment, waste dumping and other activities harmful to the forest ecosystem and argued the petitioner had approached the court merely on the basis of apprehension.
The High Court noted that the Forest Department had specifically disputed the petitioner’s allegations of interference and weighed this against the documents establishing the institution’s legal status.
It disposed of the petition by directing Forest officials not to interfere with the institution’s peaceful possession, administration and enjoyment without due process, while clarifying that this protection could not be used as cover to encroach on Reserve Forest area. Should any such encroachment occur, the court said, the Forest Department remains free to act under the Forest Rights Act and other applicable laws.
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