By Rehan Ansari, TwoCircles.net,
Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Wednesday (23rd Feb.) upheld the Waqf Tribunal decision and thereby rejected the suspicious deal between Peer Bagdadi Dargah Trust and one of its tenants Mr. Vijay Shetty, hotelier, builder and owner of Viswa Hotel.
TwoCircles.net had reported the illegal and unwarranted deal in its series on corruption in the Maharashtra Waqf Board of which the controversial Maulana Ghulam Mohammed Vastanvi is a Member.
The Aurangabad Bench of Bombay High Court rejected the appeal of the trust and reinstated the order given by the Waqf Tribunal discarding the deal between the trust and the Viswa Hotel.
According to the deal, the Trustees rented 4000 Sq.ft. area at prime location for meager rent of Rs.2600 and maintenance of Rs.3100 per month in two agreements and for the premium of Rs70 lacs. The tenancy rights were drafted in such a way that it gave ownership right of the land to the tenant, Mr. Vijay Shetty and ceased all the rights of the Trust.
Ironically, the Maharashtra Waqf Board favored the deal but increased the rent to Rs.20, 000/- per month. But a common local Muslim Mr. Farid Abdul Latif Noornai appealed against this decision in the Waqf Tribunal. After hearing the case, the Tribunal totally scrapped the deal and came down heavily on the trust. The trust moved the high court against the Waqf Tribunal order.
Abdus Sattar Mutawalli, who led the fight from the front said, “Allah has helped us and justice has been done with the mosque.”