PIL challenging shifting of Wakf Board office to Mumbai filed in HC

Aurangabad, Nov 11:

A public interest litigation (PIL) challenging the shifting of Maharashtra State Board of Wakfs (MSBoW) office to Mumbai has been filed in the Aurangabad Bench of Bombay High Court. The next hearing will be after Diwali.

The chief minister, deputy chief minister, Wakf and minority minister, chief secretary, minority department''s secretary and Wakf Board''s chief executive officer have been named as respondents in the case.

Earlier, the state''s Wakf minister Nawab Malik held a press conference in the city on October 24 and announced shifting of the head office of Wakf Board to Mumbai. Hence the lawyer of Wakf Tribunal and High Court Javed Abdul Hameed Deshmukh challenged the decision as Party-in-Person. He stated that the decision is not in the interest of people. The senior lawyer Rajendra Deshmukh will represent him.

The litigant stated that the headquarter of MSBoW existed in Aurangabad for the past 60 years. Besides, majority of Wakf properties, out of the total properties on record, exist in Aurangabad district. The people visit the office in connection with their Wakf related works, which is feasible in Aurangabad compared to Mumbai. Besides, the state government, through its GR of dated December 4, 2015, had decided to construct a new building to house the state Wakf Board office as well as the Wakf Tribunal. It had also approved the funds for the purpose, but the implementation has not been done, so far.

The litigation also mentioned that the High Court, while giving a verdict in one important case, had ordered to set up the headquarter of Wakf Tribunal in Aurangabad reviewing the strength of pending cases for hearing. Accordingly, it will be legally and technically justified to continue the functioning of the state Wakf Board office in Aurangabad.