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New Delhi/Malegaon:
A day after Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind
president Maulana Arshad Madani asked the Government to abandon its
plan of bringing Waqf land under National Minorities Development
and Finance Corporation, Mualana Syed Wali Rehmani, another
influential leader came out strongly against the government's
proposed plan.
"Instead of imposing something
without consultation, you should present in front of the community
leaders and organisations what you intend to achieve by bringing
in the Waqf Development Authority", Gen Secretary of All India
Muslim Personal Board (AIMPLB) and Chairman of Rehmani Foundation,
Munger Maulana Syed Mohammad Wali Rehmani said in a letter to
Minister of Minority Affairs Slaman Khurshid.
Stating that the apprehensions about
the Waqf Development Authority are not new, he said, "The Central
Waqf Council has actually expressed its opposition to such a move on several
occasions in the past. It had also written to Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh and UPA Chairperson Mrs. Sonia Gandhi."
"While we did not receive any reply
of these communications, it is ironic to see that the government
seems to be moving ahead with its plan without taking the
community into confidence", he added.
Coming down heavily on the attitude that
'the bureaucrats are always right', he said, "This is the
bureaucracy which has harmed the interests of the community the
most. Hence, unless thorough discussion is done on the proposed Waqf Development Authority, it will not be acceptable to the
community."
Earlier, Maulana Arshad Madni, president of Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind
had also asked
the Government to abandon its plan of bringing Waqf land under
National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation as it was
"unacceptable" to them.
"We will not accept any such flawed bill which does not give an
assurance of complete protection of 4 lakh acres of Muslim 'Aukaf'
or Waqf land spread all across the country and which does not make
sure that revenue generated through the Waqf land will be used
only for the benefits of Muslims," he said.
On April 23 this year, former Union
Minister and Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav had accused
the government of attempting to grab waqf properties across the
country by forming the Waqf Development Authority.
"The union cabinet has
recently taken a decision to entrust control of all waqf
properties to a newly-constituted National Waqf Development Agency
and this will lead to "only 24 percent of the waqf properties
continuing to vest with the Muslim community, while the new agency
will get all rights over the remaining 76 percent", Mulayam said
while addressing a press conference on April 23 in Lucknow.
"Any such move is against the interest of the Muslim community and
the Samajwadi Party will, therefore, oppose the proposal tooth and
nail," he said.
"Waqf property belongs to the Muslims and no government can be
allowed to usurp that right from the community. After all waqf
property belongs to Muslims, whose ancestors had left it behind
for them," he said.
Claiming that while he was in power in Uttar Pradesh, he had made
it a point to ensure complete protection of all waqf properties
and many such properties had also been clearly demarcated by
raising of boundary walls around them, he said unless the central
government revoked its decision, "such a move was bound to send
very wrong signals to the entire Muslim community".
"Muslims may even start thinking that their property is not safe
in India, which in turn may have very serious repercussions," he
said.
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