JUDGMENT

Ghulam Mohammed, J.

These two writ petitions are filed praying this Court to declare provisions of the Wakf Act, 1995 (Central Act 43 of 1995) particularly Section 14 of the Wakf Act, unconstitutional, arbitrary and violative of Articles 14, 25 and 26 of the Constitution.

2. WP No. 11349 of 1996 is filed by the Association of AP Saj jada Nasheens, Mutawallies & Khidmat Guzaran of Wakfs, Dargah Hazrath Shaikh-ji-hali, Urdu Shareef, Hyderabad, represented by its President Soofi Shah Mohd. Sabir Ali and WP No. 11728 of 1996 is filed by All India Shia Organization, Yakutpura, Hyderabad, represented by its Joint Secretary Mirza Mehdi Ali Baig. Since the relief sought for in these writ petitions is the same, they are taken up together for hearing and are being disposed of by a common judgment.

3. The facts in WP No. 11349 of 1996 are adverted to. It is stated that prior to the enactment of the Wakf Act, 1995, the Union Legislature had enacted the Wakf Act, 1954 and the provisions of the said Act held the field for the last about half a century in all the States of this country, though the Union Legislature and some of the State Legislatures have been making amendments from time to time to the provisions of the Wakf Act, 1954 according to the exigencies. The very concept of creation and administration of wakf give rise to the concept of the person or persons connected with the administration of the wakf. The said persons may either be appointed by the author of the wakfs or under a statute or by the users of the wakf and such persons are called "Mutawallis" under the Muslim Personal Law. The very purpose of enacting the Act is to provide better administration for wakfs and the matters connected thereto or incidental thereto.

4. It is further stated that the Wakf Act, 1995, provides for the better administration of Wakf and other incidental matters thereto. That while the avowed object of the Act is to democratize the functions of the wakfs and to make the Mutawallis a self-governing body, the provisions of the Wakf Act, 1995, in fact totally denude Mutawallis of the powers and functions and purport to confer powers on a body constituted by persons who are totally unconnected with wakfs or their intents and purposes. That while Sub-clause (b) of Sub-section (1) of Section 14 provides for election of one or two members from the Muslim members of the Parliament, State Legislature, Muslim members of the Bar Council and the Mutawallis of the wakfs having annual income of one lac and above, Sub-clauses (c), (d) and (e) of Sub-section (1) empower the State Government to nominate certain officers or persons to the Board. That in pursuance of Section 109 Wakf Act, 1995, the Government of Andhra Pradesh framed rules for conducting elections in G.O.Ms. No. 68, dated 27-5-1996 and by subsequent G.O.Ms. No. 74, dated 11-6-1996, the Government constituted the Wakf Board by conducting elections of the members of the AP Wakf Board under Sub-clause (b) of Sub-section (1) of Section 14 of the Wakf Act, 1995, from among members of the Parliament, members of the Legislature, members of the AP Bar Council and Mutawallis of the wakfs in the State, having an annual income of one lac and above. It is further stated that only one member can be elected from among Mutawallis, whereas four members are required to be elected from other denominations. It is stated that the Government is empowered to nominate two persons from each category of persons under Clauses (c) and (d) and also appoint a government official under Clause (e) of Sub-section (1) of Section 14 of the Act. Thus five persons are nominated by the Government and four persons are elected from bodies which have nothing to do with the wakfs. In the result, out of ten or eleven persons which would constitute Wakf Board, nine or ten, members are persons who are not at all connected with wakfs.

5. It is further stated that the Members of the Parliament or the Legislature, or even a member of the Bar C