Waqf Board and Telangana government lock horns

From disagreements between the elected Waqf Board and its CEO, to a tug of war between minorities agencies of the State and Centre

It was a year which saw Minorities Welfare Department (MWD) grappling with its own agency, and another agency grappling with a body affiliated to the Union government. The year also saw disbursals amounting to several crores to thousands of beneficiaries under the State Government’s flagship Shaadi Mubarak scheme.    

Given the tussle over the appointment of a new Chief Executive Officer (CEO), the Telangana State Waqf Board (TSWB) and the MWD locked horns and showed no signs of disengagement.

Hitherto spoken in whispers, the disagreement became public knowledge, and the drama unfolded after the TSWB alleged that its Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Shahnawaz Qasim, an Indian Police Service Officer, was not dedicating enough time to deal with waqf matters. As a fallout of this tussle, the TSWB on October 20 passed a resolution to repatriate Mr Qasim. 

But the grappling did not end there. Following an order of the Telangana High Court, the TSWB sent the names of two deputy secretary-rank officers, one of whom was likely to replace Mr. Qasim. However, the office of the TSWB Chairman sent the communication, not the CEO. In its response, the MWD reiterated that as per Section 26 of the Waqf Act, the CEO should verify the TSWB’s resolution. It is the latter who should communicate with the government, the letter stated. Further, the MWD pointed to certain deficiencies in following the procedures, including furnishing the consent letters from the aforementioned officers.  

The National Commission for Minorities alleged that there were irregularities seen in the working of the Telangana Minorities Residential Educational Institutions Society. The NCM then sent notices to TMREIS Secretary B Shafiullah and others, directing them to appear before the panel. Mr Shafiullah resisted the move and moved the Telangana High Court, which ordered an interim suspension of the summons. The NCM then raised concerns over an alleged case of sexual assault in a school. However, the Rachakonda Police, who booked a case and began an investigation, contradicted the claim and said that the issue was marital discord between a woman employee and her husband.

After the COVID - 19 pandemic, the year saw the highest funds disbursal under the Telangana government’s flagship Shaadi Mubarak scheme. As many as 29,887 beneficiaries received over ₹ 298 crore. The scheme reached over 2.1 lakh young women for their marriage.

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