Wakf land: Lokayukta Court moved against Minister

Mangalore Today News Network

Bangalore, Jun 8, 2013: Even as calls for sacking Wakf Minister Qamar-ul Islam over corruption allegations reached a crescendo in his hometown Gulbarga, an activist filed a private complaint before the Special Lokayukta Court here on Friday accusing him of illegally acquiring Wakf properties.

In his complaint, Tabrez Pasha, an activist from Gulbarga, submitted documents to the court showing that Mr. Qamar-ul Islam illegally acquired eight acres and 34 guntas of Wakf land in Bandepura in Gulbarga.

The land was part of the shrine complex of the 14 century Sufi saint Hazrat Khwaja Bande Nawaz.

The land was converted into a residential layout with 190 plots, each one of which was sold by Mr. Qamar-ul Islam for sums ranging from Rs. 6 lakh to Rs. 20 lakh, according to the complaint.

The complaint said that when Mr. Qamar-ul Islam was a member of the Karnataka Wakf Board in 1998, he allegedly misused his official position to de-notify the shrine land.

The land had been illegally occupied by some people against whom the Wakf Board was fighting a legal battle.

Mr. Qamar-ul Islam allegedly secured a General Power of Attorney from those who had encroached upon the land before the de-notification.

Once, the land was de-notified, Mr. Qamar-ul Islam, the complainant said, converted it into a residential layout.

Mr. Pasha said that he filed a complaint with the Karnataka State Minorities Commission a few months ago and the commission had, in turn, submitted a report to the government.

However, the government had failed to take action.

Courtesy: The Hindu