Service inam lands for religious mosque services constitute inalienable wakf property; title claims via partition/sales thereon invalid; plaintiffs must prove independent title, not rely on defence weakness.

JUDGMENT :

AUGUSTINE GEORGE MASIH, J.

1. The present Civil Appeal arises out of the final Judgment and Order dated 18.01.2011 (“Impugned Judgment”) passed by the High Court of Andhra Pradesh (“High Court”) in Civil Revision Petition No. 3786 of 2009, whereby the High Court allowed the revision petition preferred by the plaintiffs and decreed the suit, setting aside the Judgment and Decree dated 04.08.2009 (“Tribunal Judgment”) passed by the Andhra Pradesh Wakf Tribunal, Hyderabad (“Tribunal”) in O.S. No. 68 of 2000.

2. The Appellant herein is Andhra Pradesh State Wakf Board, represented by its chairperson (“Wakf Board”), who was the original defendant no. 1. The Respondents were the original plaintiffs and their legal representatives.

3. The factual matrix, giving rise to the present appeal, in brief, is that the plaintiffs, namely, Janaki Busappa and others, instituted O.S. No. 68 of 2000 before the Tribunal, seeking reliefs of permanent injunction and declaration against the defendants and later plaint was amended seeking relief of setting aside letter dated 21.08.1999 issued by the Appellant allotting land to original Defendant No. 2, Jamat Ahle Hadees, for construction of Edgah.

4. The case set up by the plaintiffs was that they are the absolute owners and possessors of land admeasuring Ac. 3.00 in Sy. No. 914/B situated at Kallur Village, Kurnool District (“suit property”). It was asserted that the said property was purchased by them under registered sale deeds executed in the years 1985 and 1996. The plaintiffs traced their title to a registered partition deed dated 01.06.1945, contending that the property originally formed part of a “personal inam” granted by the erstwhile Nawab of Kurnool.

5. It was further pleaded that Defendant No. 1 - A.P. State Wakf Board, Appellant herein, vide proceedings dated 21.08.1999, purported to allot the suit land to Defendant No. 2 - Jamat Ahle Hadees for construction of an Edgah, which action, according to the plaintiffs, was wholly illegal, arbitrary and without authority of law. On this basis, the plaintiffs sought a declaration that the said proceedings are null and void, coupled with a decree of permanent injunction restraining the defendants from interfering with their peaceful possession and enjoyment of the suit schedule property.

6. The defendants, on entering appearance, filed their written statement contesting the claim of the plaintiffs. It was specifically averred that the suit land is not a private property but constitutes “service inam” land attached to Budda Buddi Mosque, as evidenced by Title Deed No. 3826, and forms part of registered Wakf property. The defendants contended that the partition deed dated 01.06.1945 and the subsequent sale deeds relied upon by the plaintiffs are void and confer no valid title, inasmuch as the land, being service inam, could not have been alienated. Defendant No. 2 was already in possession of the land and had commenced construction activities by raising compound walls for the purpose of an Edgah.

7. On th