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NDTV
7 days ago
- General
- NDTV
"Let Gurdwara Be... Relinquish Your Right": Supreme Court To Delhi Waqf Board
Quick Read Summary is AI generated, newsroom reviewed. The Supreme Court dismissed the Delhi Waqf Board's claim to land on which a gurdwara has been functioning since Partition, saying mere historical mosque claim is insufficient without being able to prove ownership. New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday dismissed a Delhi Waqf Board plea claiming land in the city's Shahdhara area on which a gurdwara has been functioning since the Partition. The court said that since the gurdwara has been operational for decades the Waqf Board should back down. In the hearing today senior advocate Sanjoy Ghose, arguing for the Waqf Board, said the lower courts had, in fact, held a mosque had been functioning there before the gurdwara came up. To this Justice Satish Chandra Sharma said, "Not 'some kind of'... a proper functioning gurdwara, and once there is a gurdwara, let it be. A religious structure is already functioning." "You should yourself relinquish that claim, you see," the court told the Waqf Board. According to the Waqf Board, which had approached the Supreme Court after the Delhi High Court turned down its claim in 2010, the mosque that predated the gurdwara was the Masjid Takia Babbar Shah, and that it was built on land dedicated as waqf, or for religious purposes. The Delhi Wakf Board filed for recovery of the land as Waqf property. The defendant had argued, in the High Court and Supreme Court, the property ceased to become a waqf as the then-owner, Mohd Ahsaan, sold it in 1953. Fifteen years ago the High Court had admitted the fact of sale and possession, but also touched on the inability of the defendant to "adduce any document of title to evidence the purchase of this property". That, though, "does not benefit the plaintiff", the High Court said. The court noted the plaintiff, i.e., the Waqf Board had to establish its own case. Waqf and waqf properties are coming under increased scrutiny now following the government enacting amendments to laws governing the management of Waqf properties nationwide. Those amendments had been challenged by opposition parties in the Supreme Court, which has yet to rule on that clutch of petitions. Meanwhile, however, the government this week said it would press on with one of the revisions - the mandatory registration of Waqf properties. If any Waqf property is not registered, it will be considered as disputed and the matter will be sent to the Waqf Tribunal, sources said. If registration is delayed due to some technical or any other major issue, an extra one to two months can be granted.
Indian Express
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
No coercive action against Shahi Idgah committee: Delhi High Court to DDA
The Delhi High Court on Thursday directed the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) not to take coercive action against the Shahi Idgah Managing Committee in relation to a showcause notice issued by the authority. In the notice, the DDA demanded recovery of Rs 12.09 lakh as charges for the use of Idgah Park during the annual Ijtema held in December 2024. The relief for the Shahi Idgah Managing Committee came after senior advocate Sanjoy Ghose, appearing for the body, informed the court that a suit is pending before the Waqf Tribunal seeking declaration, demarcation and permanent injunction in respect of the subject Waqf property, including the park adjoining the mosque in Sadar Bazar. Ghose, however, pointed out that while the suit was last taken up by the Tribunal on April 7 last year, it had expressed its inability to adjudicate the matter because the Waqf Tribunal is not constituted and consequently lacked a quorum to adjudicate the matter. The Tribunal, at the time, posted the matter next for July 24 this year. Justice Vikas Mahajan on Thursday, taking into account the fact that the Waqf Tribunal is non-functional at the moment, directed the DDA that it 'shall not take any coercive action' in relation to the showcause notice it has issued on February 11. The court also issued notice to the DDA, seeking its response to the contentions being raised in the petition. It posted the matter next for September 10. In the petition moved by the managing committee, it has been contended that they have been in 'continuous, peaceful and undisturbed possession and management of the Shahi Idgah and the adjoining land, including Idgah Park, which has been used for religious purposes, including the offering of prayers (Namaz), annual religious congregations (Ijtema), and other community functions, since the Mughal period'. It has also been highlighted that the entire parcel of land, including the Shahi Idgah and Idgah Park, was notified as Waqf property by the Delhi Waqf Board in a gazette on April 16, 1970. The DDA has claimed that it is its park. The managing committee claimed the park is only maintained by DDA, in cooperation with the managing committee of Shahi Idgah, and its maintenance and beautification by DDA does not confer any ownership rights. According to the petitioner, DDA, 'in an arbitrary and unlawful manner,' is now claiming ownership over parts of the said Waqf property, specifically the Idgah Park on the basis of 'an erroneous interpretation' of an HC judgment of September 23, 2024, that recorded that DDA is in possession of the park. The petitioner has contended that relying on this erroneous interpretation, the DDA has issued a showcause notice for usage of the park during Itjema procession from December 6-8, 2024, and has demanded a charge of Rs 12,09,272 which includes booking charge of Rs 9.77 lakh, cleaning charge of Rs 1.75 lakh and GST at 18%.
