Finalise appointment of 3rd Waqf Tribunal member, constitution of Board: HC to govt

The state authorities on Thursday advised HC that it’s within the strategy of appointing members to the Waqf Tribunal and has obtained suggestions for a similar from the Bar Council of Gujarat, as required below the Guidelines, on Might 1.

Assistant Authorities Pleader (AGP) Utkarsh Sharma sought that the matter be posted after summer time trip in June, when the state can apprise the court docket of concrete developments by the use of an affidavit. Sharma knowledgeable the bench of Appearing Chief Justice A J Desai and Justice Biren Vaishnav, “The one cause (for in search of extra time) is as a result of we wish to place one thing concrete by the use of an affidavit, these are solely interregnum developments taking place at an interim stage. Subsequent time maybe we are going to place one thing on the affidavit which might be one thing very concrete.”

The submission got here after ACJ Desai orally remarked, “For each step you’ll take one month?… That is like contempt, one after the other, each day you’re coming (and saying) ‘we have now taken this step, now we want some extra time’.”

Below the Waqf Act, the state Waqf boards are constituted by respective state governments for defense of Waqf properties. The state can also be authorised to arrange Waqf tribunals.

The Waqf Board was dissolved by the state on January 31 and the tribunal, which ought to comprise three members, has been functioning with out a full coram – with out a chairperson and one member since final July.

Within the absence of full coram, many issues stay pending adjudication earlier than the tribunal. A number of issues, which in any other case would have been adjudicated by the tribunal, find yourself earlier than the HC below Article 226.

Earlier this 12 months, a public curiosity litigation was moved by the Ahmedabad Sunni Muslim Wakf Committee earlier than the HC highlighting the above points and in search of the court docket’s instructions to the state to represent the tribunal instantly. The committee additionally sought that the state Waqf Board be constituted in a time-bound schedule.

The court docket on Thursday stated, “It’s anticipated from state authorities that they shall finalise the appointment of a 3rd member of Waqf Tribunal in addition to the structure of the Waqf Board earlier than the subsequent date of listening to.” The HC will hear the matter once more on June 23.