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‘Protest against Waqf Act 2025 should start with Waqf boards’

The functioning of Waqf boards “operating” in various states of India came under the scanner at the day-long conference themed protection of Awqaf organized by the Minority Defence Committee (MCD) in Malegaon Sunday

Tuesday June 24, 2025 1:35 AM, ummid.com News Network

[Former MLA and Convener of Minority Defence Committee, Asif Shaikh Rasheed, speaking at the Conference on Protection of Awqaf held in Malegaon Sunday (Photo: ummid.com)]

Malegaon: The functioning of Waqf boards “operating” in various states of India came under the scanner at the day-long conference themed protection of Awqaf organized by the Minority Defence Committee (MCD) in Malegaon Sunday.

Raising serious questions over the functioning of the Waqf boards and rampant corruption therein, Muslim community leaders who gathered in Malegaon from different districts of North Maharashtra asserted that any war against the Modi government’s Waqf Amendment Act 2025 should start with Waqf boards.

“The Waqf Amendment Act 2025 was not there when the Waqf land was allotted to Mukesh Ambani who later built there his dream home Antilia”, former Congress MLA Shaikh Asif and Convener of the Minority Defence Committee, said without naming the Indian multi-billionaire.

“This happened when the Waqf Board CEO, all board members and the Minority Minister were all Muslims…. There were a huge number of Muslim MLAs in the Maharashtra Assembly and the state government was headed by secular parties at the time”, he added.

“This raises serious questions over the functioning of the Waqf boards, its CEOs and its members”, he said in his presidential speech at the Conference.

“This doesn’t mean we shouldn’t focus on the danger the Waqf Act 2025 poses. Our opposition to the Waqf Act is paramount and foremost… But we cannot ignore the corrupt practices of the Waqf boards and their members”, he said.

Asif Shaikh was responding to the concerns raised by the community leaders, activists and subject experts from different parts of Maharashtra over the large scale corruption and ill-intentions of the Waqf board CEOs and the members.

“Our Waqf boards are not working... I used to advise our people with power to use their influence in the matter”, Akramul Jabbar Khan, former IRS Officer, said at the Conference.

[Former IRS Officer and (Retired) Income Tax Commissioner Akramul Jabbar Khan addressing the Minority Defence Conference in Malegaon (Photo: ummid.com)]

Akramul Jabbar Khan, who retired as Income Tax Commissioner in Pune, founded Waqf Task Force with Salim Mullah, Ali Inamdar and other colleagues. The platform is currently leading a campaign to save Waqf lands worth around 5,400 crores in Pune.

In his speech, Akramul Jabbar Khan also shared documents to establish that there are ample examples wherein entire villages have been donated as Waqf.

“This is 1848 document that shows three villages in their entirety were donated as Waqf”, he said.

“Dissolve Maharashtra Waqf Board”

Highlighting how the Maharashtra Waqf Board is functioning, Saleem Mullah of Waqf Task Force shared the example of Siraj Ahmed, who is a trustee of a mosque in Pune and is fighting since last four years to prove he is alive.

“Maharashtra Waqf Board records show him as dead. He is fighting with the board since last four years to prove he is live”, Saleem Mullah said.

Siraj Ahmed was present at the Conference as Salim Mullah shared this with the audience.

Salim Mullah said a new fund, namely “Waqf Fund”, has been imposed to, what is claimed, meet the expenses of Waqf Board even as it is not providing the services it is supposed to.

“Why should we pay the Waqf Fund when there is no transparency and it is not at all functioning? No Service, no Waqf Fund”, he said.

Salim Mullah also accused the Maharashtra Waqf Board of de-notifying prime Waqf lands in Mumbai and other places in the state as non-Waqf to pave their sell off. He said there are a number of cases where Waqf board has notified the Waqf land as non-Waqf.

"This also includes a masjid. So, the question must be asked.. Why the Waqf board has been formed, to protect the Waqf or to notify it as non-Waqf?" he said.

"Assembly and Parliament proceedings are broadcast live, but we don't know when the Waqf board calls its meeting", he said, demanding, “The Maharashtra Waqf Board CEO should resign and the state Waqf board should immediately be dissolved in order to protect the Waqf lands."

“This is high time we stand against these people”, he said.

“Waqf is a religious matter”

Addressing the Minority Defence Committee’s North Maharashtra Conference, Maulana Umrain Mahfooz Rahmani, asserted that the protection of Awqaf is the most serious issue for the Indian Muslims today.

He also rejected the notion that Waqf is a matter of management, and not religious.

“There should not be any confusion about this. Waqf is part and partial of our religion. Any interference in Waqf is not only against the Constitution of India but also against our religion”, Rahmani, the Secretary of All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB), said.

Criticizing some sections of the Waqf Amendment Act 2025, Maulana Umrain Rahmani said they have been deliberately introduced to widen the communal divide.

“India will progress only when all communities – Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians and others, remain united. We must work together for communal unity and brotherhood. But, sadly, this government is doing the opposite”, he said.

“Political power is the key”

[Co-ordinator and Co-founder of Minority Defence Committee, Mustaqeem Dignity, speaking at the Conference on Waqf Amendment Act 2025 held in Malegaon. (Photo: ummid.com)]

Coordinator of the Minority Defence Committee, Mustaqeem Dignity, while addressing the MCD conference in Malegaon highlighted the importance of political power in a democracy.

“We are suffering because we are politically weak…. because of lack of awareness. This is high time for us to unite.... Encourage and support those who have knowledge and understanding of administrative work... It's necessary to become politically strong”, he said.

Quoting Chief Justice of India (CJI) B R Gavai who said ‘the executive has become judge, jury, and executioner all at once’, Mustaqeem asserted this is only for Muslims.

“The way homes and properties of Muslims are being bulldozed in various states of India, and the way they are being treated currently it won’t be wrong to say that the executive has become judge, jury, and executioner only for Muslims”, he said.

Watch: National Anthem

Other related topics discussed at the Conference included encroachments on Waqf lands, development of Waqf lands for the benefit of the community and rent of the Waqf lands as per market value.

“There will be no Muslim beggar, if the Waqf lands are systematically developed and leased as per the market value”, Salim Mullah of Waqf Task Force said.

Others who spoke at the conference included Dr Arif Ajmeri – Founder Dasatavez, Farook Sheikh, Advocate Azeem Khan, Architect Aqueel Ansari, Advocate Rafe Yazdani, Abdul Karim Salar and Syed Shahzad Hussain (CA).

The Conference, held at Bostaan Hill Resort and Farmhouse in Malegaon, was attended by over 1,200 delegates from different districts of North Maharashtra.

Besides Waqf, the Conference also discussed the issues relating to crackdown on loudspeakers in mosques and harassment of Muslims in the name of birth certificate.

Topics such as laxity in submitting audit and change reports, and other trust related documents in time, financial mismanagement etc also were discussed at the Conference.

There are around 96,000 acres of Waqf lands in Maharashtra, as per the government records. Based on unofficial records, activists put this number as around 1,25,000 acres.

Abdul Haleem Siddiqui, Anees Azhar, Ashfaq Ayyubi, Abdullah Mubarak, Junaid Shaikh and Imran Rashid jointly moderated the Conference that ran for around six hours without break.

The Conference began with the National Anthem and ended with Vote of Thanks by Samajwadi Party Malegaon leader, Suhail Abdul Karim.

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