Kochi : The Kerala High Court on Wednesday, through an interim order, restrained the state Waqf board from taking any major decision without its permission.
A bench of Chief Justice Soumen Sen and Justice Syam Kumar V M also directed that the board shall not incur any capital expenditure or make any policy decision without the express leave of the court, a senior advocate associated with the case said.
The bench also directed the government to ensure that its representative is appointed in the board in accordance with the provisions of the United Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development Act.
The board shall, for the time being, function under the administration of the joint secretary to the state government dealing with Waqf matters, the court said.
The directions of the bench came while hearing several PILs, including one by BJP leader Shone George, alleging that the functioning of the board was illegal as it did not have two non-Muslim members as mandated by the Act. The court listed the matter for further hearing on July 22.
During the hearing, the petitioners argued that the board’s current composition directly violates the statutory mandates of the newly enacted central legislation, which seeks to bring greater transparency and diverse representation to Waqf administration.
In response, the state government requested time to file a detailed counter-affidavit addressing the vacancy concerns, prompting the division bench to implement these temporary restrictive measures to prevent any irreversible administrative or financial decisions before the court examines the matter fully.
