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New Delhi. The Supreme Court on Friday stayed the Kerala High Court order which had said that declaring Munambam’s land as Waqf was a ‘strategy of the Kerala Waqf Board to grab the land’. The Supreme Court ordered to maintain status quo on the disputed land. However, the bench of Justice Manoj Mishra and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan clarified that it has not stayed the High Court’s direction upholding the government order appointing an inquiry commission to find out the ownership of the disputed area.
The dispute pertains to Cherai and Munambam villages in Ernakulam district, where residents have alleged that the Waqf Board is illegally claiming their land and properties despite their registered documents and land tax payment receipts. The Supreme Court has issued a notice to the Kerala government and sought its response on the petition of Kerala Waqf Sanrakshan Vedi challenging the October 10 order of the High Court on 404 acres of land located in Munambam.
Waqf Board’s argument
Senior advocate Huzefa Ahmadi, appearing for the petitioner, said the High Court had made wrong observations by interfering in the issues to be dealt with by the Waqf Tribunal, and the comment on the validity of the Waqf deed was inappropriate as the issue was not under consideration. He said the case before the High Court is a challenge to the inquiry commission set up by the state to look into the validity of the Waqf deed and the nature of the land, both issues falling squarely within the jurisdiction of the Waqf Tribunal.
Poor local people were never listened to
Senior advocate Jaideep Gupta, appearing for the Kerala government, opposed the arguments and said that the mutawalli of the concerned waqf had neither approached the High Court nor had any objection to the formation of the inquiry commission. He said that the inquiry commission has already submitted its report to the state government. Ahmadi said that the Mutawalli of Waqf has supported the opposition parties (local residents). The lawyer appearing for the local residents said that these people are poor fishermen and challenging the inquiry commission has become futile as the report has been submitted to the state government. He said that the views of these poor local people were never listened to and in 2019 suddenly their properties were declared Waqf.
Is High Court the appropriate forum?
Senior advocate Maninder Singh, appearing for other local residents, said that there is already a civil court decision which says that this land is not Waqf land. The bench said that the High Court is not the appropriate forum to consider the question of the nature of the land, as the matter is pending before the tribunal. Justice Mishra said, “It appears that the High Court has exceeded its jurisdiction.”
Justice Bhuyan asked whether the High Court is the appropriate forum to decide on these issues? The bench issued a notice directing the reply to be filed in the week starting January 27. The bench also ordered to maintain status quo on the property.
