No Waqf Appointments, No Change In Status Until Next Hearing: Supreme Court
No Waqf Appointments, No Change In Status Until Next Hearing: Supreme Court
M.U.H
17/04/202549
New Delhi: The government on Thursday assured the Supreme Court there will be "no Waqf appointments... (and) no change in status (of Waqf boards and lands)" till the next hearing of a clutch of petitions challenging the changes to laws governing administration of Muslim charitable properties.
The court was also told the status of existing waqfs, including those claimed via the controversial 'waqf by user' clause, would not change till further notice.
The 'waqf by user' provision allows Waqf boards to claim properties without documentation if used by Muslims for religious or charitable purposes. This had been red-flagged in yesterday's hearing. "We are not saying all 'waqf by user' is wrong... but there is concern," the court said.
The "no appointments" reference was to changes to the composition of Waqf boards.
Specifically, under amendments passed by Parliament this month, Waqf boards must now include non-Muslims, a provision criticised by community members and opposition parties.
During the hearing, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the government, sought (and was given) a week's time to respond to challenges to Waqf law changes. In the meantime, he said, the government would not make appointments under Section 9 and 14 of the new law.
These sections limit the number of Muslim members on the Central Waqf Council and state Waqf boards to just eight and four, out of 22 and 11, respectively. And these had drawn sharp observations from the Supreme Court, with Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna asking the Solicitor General if the government would, in turn, allow Muslims to part of Hindu endowment boards.
Meanwhile, the court also said it would only deal with five writ petitions, noting "it is impossible to deal with 100 or 200 (that have been filed so far)". The others will be treated as 'disposed of', the Chief Justice said, as he allowed the government a week to reply to the petitions.
The petitioners will then be given five days to reply to the government, the court said.
