Samajwadi Party Member of Legislative Assembly Abu Asim Azmi has called the Maharashtra State Board of Waqf's recent decision to dismiss the trustees of Minara Masjid and approve the appointment of a new board of trustees to manage the mosque 'illegal'.
Azmi, who addressed a press conference on Tuesday, said the Waqf Board has no authority over the Minara Masjid trust as the mosque is not a Wakf trust but a public body governed by the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act, 1950, (earlier called the Bombay Public Trusts Act, 1950) with the Charity Commissioner as the administrator.
"The Minara Masjid trust was created in 1879 and was registered under the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act. The approval of the new trustees is a wrong decision," said Azmi who said that he would raise the issue in the state assembly and ask for the suspension of Juned Sayyad who holds additional charge as Chief Executive Officer of the Waqf Board.
Earlier this month, the Waqf Board, which is hearing complaints about illegal property deals by the mosque's trustees, approved the appointment of a new board of trustees to take over its management.
There are allegations that the trust made illegal transfers of 83 properties, violating Waqf law. The trust has been arguing that while it is a Muslim trust, they are not a Waqf trust. The Waqf Board has said that the trustees were removed and a new board was approved under sections 64 and 69 of the Waqf law.
Azmi alleged that the transactions made by the trust with 83 tenants were not illegal. "The trust has taken consent from the tenants for redevelopment of the property owned by the trust. The properties were not sold but the Waqf Board said the properties were sold and dismissed the old board."
