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Wakf Board hand in glove with the encroachers: Telangana High Court
Telangana High Court
The High Court Division Bench headed by Chief Justice Raghavendra Singh Chauhan and Justice Bollam Vijaysen Reddy on Tuesday heard a public interest litigation filed by Vladimir Khatoon seeking to direct the State Government to frame rules, regulations or guidelines to preserve and maintain the Muslim graveyards from encroachments in the State
Hyderabad: The High Court Division Bench headed by Chief Justice Raghavendra Singh Chauhan and Justice Bollam Vijaysen Reddy on Tuesday heard a public interest litigation filed by Vladimir Khatoon seeking to direct the State Government to frame rules, regulations or guidelines to preserve and maintain the Muslim graveyards from encroachments in the State.
Counsel for Wakf Board Mirza Safiullah Baig submitted a report to the Court on Muslim graveyards in the State. The Court erred in finding that the report was ambiguous, did not mention the occupants, and did not mention the survey numbers of the encroached graveyards. Further, the court questioned whether the Waqf Board officials had ever lodged a complaint against the encroachments at all in the concerned police stations.
The Waqf Board Counsel Mirza Safiullah Baig informed the Court that the complaints of encroachments were within the purview of the Revenue Department. The Court said that the revenue trial would continue for years and why no FIR was registered against the encroachers.
Chief Justice Chauhan pointed out that he was surprised that the Wakf Board is hand in glove with the encroachers. 'What sort of Wakf Board do we have, if they are hand in glove with the encroachers? Nothing prevents the criminal proceedings from being initiated while a civil case is going on, the Supreme Court tells us both these are exclusively distinct', CJ said.
'Nothing stops you from filing an FIR in the concerned police station where the encroachment took place. You don't require a judicial order from the High Court to file a complaint in the police station', the Court added.
'Moreover, the Court is surprised to see that the Wakf Board is taking it so casually when the people are encroaching its property. All our graveyards are permitted to be encroached upon, where would we go to bury our dead. I am sorry to say that I don't think the Wakf Board is standing by the interest of the minority community', CJ Chauhan expressed concern.
Further, the Court pointed out that ' you have listed 63 cases and not even in a single case, an FIR has been filed, which the Chief Justice feels is an indication of your incompetence'. CJ Chauhan said 'I am sorry to make this observation that I don't think the chairman of the Wakf board is working in the interest of the Wakf board. In the next hearing do ask the Chairman of the Wakf Board to be present before the Court. The Court would like to hear from him why appropriate action has not been taken on the encroachments, CJ added.
Accordingly, the Court directed the Wakf Board Counsel to furnish a better report having more details about the graveyards encroached upon and to explain the reason why no FIR has been filed so far against the alleged encroachers. The CJ bench directed the registry to tag all the connected PILs and adjourned the matter till September 11.
