By M. A. Siraj
Karnataka Board of Waqfs entrusted with management of over 43,000 properties in the State, was headless for the last three and half years. Election for the members from among mutawallis (custodians) was held in February 2019. But the Government did not constitute the Board by filling up members from the nomination category till January 2020. It was only in January this year that the new chairman was elected and appointed. The Waqf Amendment Act 2013 has mandated that elections be held after every three years. But the Karnataka Wakf Board was under a CEO for a full 3-year tenure. In this case, the official was holding an additional charge.
The situation in Karnataka is not unique. Almost every State Waqf Board is similarly dysfunctional. In neighouring Tamil Nadu, the Board is in limbo for the last eight months. On September 2019, the State Govt took over the administration of the Board. The Government said there were more nominated members than elected members which violated the Wakf Act, hence the Board was unable to perform its duties. Maharashtra Board expelled two of its members after they were found involved in corrupt deals. A plea challenging the takeover has been filed by two lawyers in the Madras High Court.
Low-yielding
There are around five lakh registered Waqf properties in India comprising around six lakh acres of land. As of now the market value of (merely) the lands under Waqf properties is estimated to be around Rs. 12,000 billion. An astronomical figure indeed! Ideally, large chunks of them in urban areas could be developed to yield an annual revenue of Rs. 12,000 to 15,000 crore. If only a tenth of it could be allocated to the education of Muslims (who are its intended beneficiaries), the Minority Welfare Ministries could do without any allocation from the Union and State budgets. But all that the few developed Waqf complexes and commercial properties annually yield is Rs. 163 crore. The sad reality is that most Waqf Boards (barring the ones in Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab) survive on doles from the State Governments.
Adverse Occupation
The Act (as amended in 2013) had envisaged autonomy for the Waqf Boards, primarily and principally, to bring inefficient management of properties and remove bottlenecks in getting the encroached properties evicted from the unauthorized occupiers and safeguard them from predators. The UPA-II Government even set up the National Waqf Development Corporation (NAWADCO) which was inaugurated by the then PM Dr. Manmohan Singh amid fanfare. Yet precious little has been done in the last seven years to get the encroachments removed and illegal occupiers evacuated. In the capital Delhi itself, of the 1977 Waqf properties under the Delhi Waqf Board, 600 are under the adverse occupation of Government agencies or are under the possession of land mafia. The DDA has raised its buildings on 138 plots of land. The Union Ministry for Urban Development has 108 plots under its possession. Another 53 are under the custody of the Archaeological Survey of India. Around 18 patches of land have buildings raised by the Delhi Nagar Nigam, DESU, NDMC, the Ministry of Defence et al. All these lands would fetch a price of Rs. 5,000 to Rs. 7,000 a sq. ft. in today’s market. Uttar Pradesh has the largest number of registered Waqf properties. Nearly 3,000 Waqf estates are under illegal occupation in the state, and most of the occupiers belong to the Muslim community.
Little Progress
Sachar Committee had recommended constitution of Waqf Tribunals for speedy settlement of property litigations; exemption of Waqf estates from Rent Control Act; enhancement of rents from Waqf Properties in sync with market rates; no politician to be appointed as the Waqf Board chairman; return of Waqf lands from the Government possession to the Boards; utilization of vacant lands either for commercial purpose or setting up educational institutions; and setting up a Waqf Development Corporation. The 2013 amended Act called for survey of Waqf properties to be done within a year of the enforcement of its Act. Little progress is in evidence on its implementation.
Tardiness
Karnataka Waqf Board, rated to be the best performer though completed the survey in April 2019, proposals for only 9,830 out of the 12,000 litigation-free properties have been submitted to the Revenue Department for Gazette notification*. The State Government announced constitution of tribunals in four revenue divisions in the State in 2014. Only a single, in Bengaluru, came up. It functioned for less than a year and became defunct after the judge was transferred. Speedy trials are not possible in mainstream court burdened as they are with piles of cases. Former Karnataka High Court judge, Justice Jawad Raheem says a case pertaining to encroachment of 482-acre Waqf estate (namely ‘Allah Naam Baaqi estate’) in Tarikere (Chikamagalur dist) was filed in 1984 while he practiced as a lawyer. The case is still in court after he has retired as a judge. He was speaking at a seminar in Bengaluru under the auspices of the Indian Auqaf Foundation recently. Curiously, the encroached property has function halls and cinema theatres. The encroacher is none but the heir of a philanthropist who dedicated a large chunk of the personal property for charitable purposes. He died issueless.
In 2015, the Karnataka Waqf Board announced development of three prime properties in Bengaluru with loans from NAWADCO. The work was to be contracted out to the National Building Corporation. The project has not seen the light of the day. Less is heard about it now. It is learnt the State Waqf Boards are averse to agreeing with terms from the NAWADCO for loans and do not want to part with the properties.
According to Mr. Rahman Khan, former Union Minister and Chairman of the Indian Auqaf Foundation, a single property, i.e., Bada Makan# which should ideally fetch a rent of Rs. 3 crore a year, fetches merely Rs. 5 lakh annually. The property rates in the area are quoted at Rs. 10,000 a sq. ft. Incidentally, it was Mr. Khan who successfully piloted the Waqf Amendment Bill 2013 till its enactment in the Parliament.
Boon to Bane
Several attempts to table the report of misuse of Waqf assets in Karnataka have been scuttled. The report by the former Karnataka Minorities Commission chairman Mr. Anwar Manippady@ had alleged embezzlement of Waqf assets to the tune of Rs. 2.3 lakh crore. Parts of the leaked report had alleged involvement of leading Congress politicians. Some of the encroached properties have medical and engineering colleges run by them (the Congress politicians). Mysteriously, even the BJP Government is reluctant to table the report despite strictures passed by the Karnataka High Court.
The apathy, mismanagement and deficiency of eagerness to implement the amended provisions of the Act are turning the valuable assets from a boon to bane.