Waqf Board Petition Seeks Criminal Probe, Seizure of Records of Three Major Hyderabad Educational Clusters
The petition alleges that these properties were not merely mismanaged, but were gradually converted into a private family-controlled financial structure from around the year 2000 onwards: Reports
HYDERABAD: A serious statutory petition has been submitted before the Chief Executive Officer, Telangana Waqf Board / Auqaf, on Saturday, seeking immediate direct management, seizure of records, forensic audit, recovery of losses and criminal prosecution in respect of three major Waqf/endowed educational-property clusters — Anwar-ul-Uloom at New Mallepally; Madrasa-i-Aizza / Neo School Aizza / Nawab Shah Alam Khan College of Engineering & Technology at Malakpet; and Mumtaz Yarud Dowla Waqf properties, including Asafia School, Mumtaz Degree College and Mumtaz College of Engineering and Technology at New Malakpet.
The petition alleges that these properties were not merely mismanaged, but were gradually converted into a private family-controlled financial structure from around the year 2000 onwards. Deccan Chronicle is in possession of a copy of the petition.
The petition has been filed against the backdrop of the murder on May 23 of Waqf activist and High Court advocate Khaja Moizuddin. The prime accused in the case, Mujahid Alam Khan and his father Mahbub Ali Khan, are associated with the three education clusters.
Khaja Tanveer Ahmed, the petitioner, told Deccan Chronicle: "Valuable Waqf and endowed land meant for education and public charitable purposes were allegedly operated through private society offices, secretary/correspondent positions, bank mandates, lease deeds, educational approvals, fee collections, rent arrangements, litigation tactics and disputed management claims."
Ahmed said the petition specifically called for a probe into the role of Mahbub Alam Khan, Mujahid Alam Khan, Dastagir Ali Khan, Gulham Yazdani and connected family members, nominees, office-bearers, tenants, lessees, bank signatories and private claimants to be examined, wherever their names appear in society records, educational files, bank records, leases, title declarations, correspondence, court proceedings or money trails.
Asked about the contentions in the petition, Supreme Court advocate Sadath Ali Siddiqui told Deccan Chronicle that the criminal angle raised in the petition was grave if Waqf property had been shown as private society property, if valuable land had been leased at nominal or artificially low rent, if fee-generating colleges and schools were being operated on Waqf/endowed land without proper Waqf accounting.
“If the income had moved through related persons, contracts, entities, bank accounts or benami-style arrangements, then the case is no longer only a Waqf management dispute,” Siddiqui said. “It's a sensitive case of the criminal breach of trust, cheating, falsification of accounts, use of false documents, unauthorised alienation of Waqf property and possible money laundering,” the Supreme Court counsel said.
He urged the government to order a CBI and ED probe into Mujahid Alam Khan, his driver Muneer and Hassan Ali to examine whether or not they were involved in hawala operations.