By TCN Staff Reporter,
Bangalore: The biggest scam in the history of India has been uncovered in Karnataka by the state minorities commission. The 7,500-page report on the wakf land encroachments in the state was on Monday submitted to the chief minister of Karnataka Mr. Sadananad Gowda. The CM has promised tough action against whoever involved in the scam and recovery of the wakf properties.
The panel was authorized in November last year to investigate the alleged wakf encroachments, after heavy pressure from media and Muslim community following complaints of illegal encroachments on the wakf land was reported from the Bidar district of the state.
The commission had done an extensive survey of the whole wakf properties of the state for the last 3 months. When it submitted its report on Monday it shocked not only Karnataka but the whole nation at large. According to the report more than 22,000 properties, measuring around 54,000 acres of land worth Rs 2 lakh crore of the Wakf Board have been embezzled by politicians, land mafia and wakf board members over the last decade in the Karnataka state.
After submitting the report the chairperson of the commission Mr. Anwar Manipaddy told the reporters, “I have submitted the report on the alleged Wakf Board land scam running into more than Rs 2 lakh crore to the Chief Minister which will be tabled on the floor of the Assembly. Apart from powerful politicians, and land mafia, several Wakf Board members, Wakf officials, middlemen have been involved in this scam. Misappropriation of Wakf land has taken place in city areas rather than in rural area nearly about 85 per cent of misappropriation has happened in city areas”
The report contains name of 38 politicians involved in the wakf scam, but the minorities commission chairman didn’t reveal their names but their names are expected to come up when the report is going to be tabled in the Assembly.
Mr Anwar Manipaddy said, “This has been done by the people of the community, leaders of the community, businessmen, and middlemen and various other people. No property of the Wakf board can be shared with anybody or sold or bought or anything. It should be used only for the benefit of the poor Muslims in particular or others in general. Once a property is made a Wakf property then it is going to be always remain a Wakf property. Wakf board officials cannot sold it, it is illegal if they are adhering to some compromise,”
The report states that the Wakf board functionaries helped transfer the land to private individuals and institutions over the last 11 years and that a major chunk of the property sold off illegally was in Bangalore, where land rates are highest.
The committee established that major irregularities took place between 2001 and 2012 in the transfer of government land to private parties through mutation. Mutation is a legal process through which the government land is transferred or sold to individuals, institutions, persons or firms after a proper verification of documents. This process was used and violated while transferring and selling of wakf land to private firms by the nexus of politicians, land mafia and wakf board members.
The report has made recommendations to the government for setting up a high-power committee to check corruption in the Wakf Board, and appointing a task force to repossess the Wakf properties which were sold illegally.
The chief minister of Karnataka Mr. Sadananda Gowda after getting the report assured Muslims of thorough probe in the wakf scam. He said, “As per the inquiry, property of the Wakf Board, worth two trillion rupees has been encroached. We will study the report in depth and on our part we will act in right sincerity. And we will ensure, not even an inch of the Wakf land will be misused. Those responsible for abuse of their powers, be they any vested interests or any high and mighty, none of them would be spared. Restoration of the grabbed property is our government’s responsibility and soon, the action taken would be known to the people. I am amazed that the wakf land scam runs into Rs 2 lakh crore. We’ll not spare anyone.”
The unearthing of wakf scandal by Karnataka minorities commission once again shows the plight of wakf properties which are meant to serve the poor Muslims. It showcases the negligence and corruption going on in the Wakf board not only in Karnataka but in the whole nation.
Link:
http://www.karmin.in/