NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court has allowed the Centre to hold out inspection of 123 delisted properties taken over from the Delhi Waqf Board whereas guaranteeing minimal disruption of their day-to-day administration by the physique. Earlier this yr, the Land and Development Office (L&DO) of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (HUA) had determined to take over 123 properties from the Board, which included mosques, dargah and graveyards, based mostly on the report of a two-member committee.
The deputy L&DO in a letter to Board chairman Amanatullah Khan on February 8 had knowledgeable in regards to the resolution to absolve the Delhi Waqf Board from all issues associated to the 123 properties based mostly on the committee report. In a current order, Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri issued discover on the petition by board in opposition to the Centre’s transfer to de-list these 123 properties and mentioned the functions filed by the petitioner for interim aid of keep could be saved pending for disposal after the completion of pleadings within the matter.
The Centre mentioned at this stage, it was confining its request solely to the bodily inspection of the properties in query, after which all of the related materials could be positioned earlier than the competent authority. “In view thereof, pending a last resolution within the current petition, respondent could act upon its letter dated 08.02.2023 to hold out the inspection whereas guaranteeing minimal disruption within the day-to-day administration of the topic properties by the petitioners,? mentioned the court docket in a current order.
The court docket famous that though the matter has been ‘heard in some element’, the difficulty dates again to 1911 and it will be applicable to name for an in depth counter affidavit from the Centre in addition to hear the petitioner board. “This calls for a more detailed hearing as the issues at hand involve complex facts and legally nuanced arguments advanced by the parties,” noticed the court docket because it listed the case for listening to on November 2.
The Centre has opposed the Board’s declare over the 123 properties, saying the Board has no stake in them as they had been acquired pursuant to land acquisition proceedings initiated between 1911 and 1914 and the mutation was carried out in its favour. The Board has contended that the properties have all the time been with it and the Centre has no energy to “absolve” it of them, whereas urging the court docket to direct the upkeep of establishment as an interim measure at this stage.
In its reply to the petition difficult the take-over, the Centre has acknowledged that every one 123 properties had been acquired pursuant to land acquisition proceedings between 1911 and 1914, compensation was paid, possession was taken and mutation was carried out in its favour. It has additionally claimed that possession has all the time been with the Centre and these acquisitions have attained finality and have been used for creating infrastructure.
“In terms of the undisputable and incontrovertible position on record, the properties in question were the subject matter of land acquisition proceedings between 1911 and 1914, pursuant to which these 123 properties were acquired, compensation was paid, possession was taken and mutation was carried out in favour of Government,” the reply has mentioned.
“The property so acquired were thereafter used for the purposes of creating infrastructure and buildings etc. That are now identified as the urban scape of Delhi. It is, therefore, submitted that the allegation on behalf of the Petitioners that they have always retained possession is clearly misconceived,” it added.
Senior advocate Rahul Mehra, showing for the Board, has argued that the petitioner has been in “continuous possession known to one and all” in relation to the properties and the regulation grants no energy to the Centre to remove waqf properties. The Centre has asserted that the petition was with out benefit and deserved to be rejected.
It has additionally alleged that the petitioner has “no interest” within the mentioned properties because it by no means appeared earlier than the committee wanting into the difficulty of acquisition. Earlier, the Board, additionally represented by lawyer Wajeeh Shafiq, has argued that every one 123 properties can’t be now taken away on the idea of the report of the two-member committee that has not even been equipped to it.
It has submitted that the dispute pertaining to the properties is over 100 years previous and the Centre, within the current case, “outsourced” the decision-making to the committee which wrongly concluded the Board has little interest in the properties despite representations made to it. It was earlier claimed that these 123 properties had been clearly demarcated by means of 4 surveys performed in 1970, 1974, 1976 and 1984 and had been later assented by the President that they had been waqf properties.
