After the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) warned the Mahayuti government in Maharashtra, led by the BJP, about the Rs 10 crore grant allocated to the Waqf board, Maharashtra BJP chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule clarified that the grant was intended for the digitisation of Waqf board records. This allotment of funds aims to correct records so that lands wrongly claimed by the board could be returned to their rightful owners, including Hindus and other communities, he said.
The Mahayuti government has allocated Rs 10 crore to the Waqf board for the financial year 2024-2025. The Minority Development Department issued an order to disburse ₹2 crore to the Waqf Board in Aurangabad on Monday, June 10th. The remaining funds will be allocated to relevant bodies throughout the financial year 2024-2025.
It has been reported that the Maharashtra government has designated 20% of its minority welfare funds to the Waqf Board this year.
Irked by the allocation, the VHP openly opposed the move by the Mahayuti government. Mohan Salekar, the Konkan Prant Secretary of the VHP, accused the state government of "strengthening" the Waqf board with the allocation, stating that the VHP was completely against this grant. He claimed that the Mahayuti government was engaging in appeasement of a single religious community, a move not even taken by the previous Congress government.
"This will never be tolerated," Salekar emphasised, warning that the Mahayuti parties would face backlash from Hindus in the upcoming local and assembly elections if the financial support to the Waqf board was not withdrawn.
Bawankule, when asked about the decision in a press conference in Mumbai, responded by highlighting alleged large-scale discrepancies in Waqf board records. He pointed out that many temples and lands belonging to other communities, including Hindus and backward classes, were wrongly registered under the Waqf board. "Should we not correct these records?" he asked.
He explained that the funds were meant for the digitisation and correction of these records, which would ultimately benefit Hindus and backward communities whose lands had been wrongly claimed. "People criticising the fund allocation should understand this," Bawankule stressed.
"The government will soon clarify its stance, but I believe that these records should be corrected and digitised, ensuring that lands belonging to Hindus and backward, Adivasi communities are returned to them," he added.
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