After madrasas survey, Yogi government to focus on Waqf properties
The Uttar Pradesh government has decided to conduct a survey of all Waqf assets in the state, while a survey of madrasas has already sparked controversy. On Tuesday, the government repealed a 1989 government directive mandating automatic Waqf registration of high or mounded land, barren land, and Usar land, India Today reported. Meanwhile, the opposition slammed the government's move, calling it divisive.
What does the government directive say?
According to reports, the UP government has directed all the district magistrates and commissioners to re-examine the documents of all the properties which have been registered under Waqf since April 7, 1989. The officials have been asked to record the status of such across the state. The properties including cemeteries, mosques, and Idgah land will be demarcated fresh.
Provisions to register Waqf property in 1989 ordinance
According to India Today, the government asserted that under a 1989 ordinance, certain cultivable land was automatically registered as Waqf property. It had come to light in the 1989 order that numerous properties were registered with the Waqf board without any application, as per officials. On the other hand, no Waqf property can be automatically registered under the Muslim Waqf Act, 1960, they said.
'Government fans Hindu-Muslim issue': Opposition react sharply
Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav chastised the Yogi Adityanath-led BJP administration in Uttar Pradesh for surveying Waqf assets. "We are against the survey of Waqf properties by the state government. It should not be done. This government has to entangle people only in Hindu-Muslim issues. People, who survey madrasas will make India a 1 trillion dollar economy?" Yadav said.
How did the BJP respond to criticism?
Reacting to Yadav's comments, UP Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya described his opposition to the survey as "appeasement politics." "Akhilesh Yadav has strayed from the issues. He only has the support of the mafia, miscreants, and rioters. The Muslim community did not get the Waqf properties. Such properties only went to the mafia," Maurya said.
Survey to check 'unrecognized' madrasas
Earlier this month, the UP government started the survey of unrecognized madrasas allegedly aiming to crack down on them. The government has decided to conduct a check on the standard of teaching and the status of basic facilities there. All the district magistrates have been directed to conduct a survey of the education system of unrecognized madrasas by October 5.
