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1964 Supreme(All) 103

Allahbad High Court
D.D.SETH
Hafiz Mohammad Zafar Ahmad - Appellant
Versus
U. P. Sunni Central Board of Waqf, Lucknow - Respondent
Decided On : 05/22/1964

Advocates:
Bashir Ahmad, for Appellant; Gyan Prakash and S. M. Zafar Raza Naqvi and Standing Counsel, for Respondents.

Headnote:

U.P. MUSLIM WAQFS ACT, 1960 - SECTIONS 33, 55, 19, 29, 33, 34, 48, 55, 56, 59, 60, 61, 75 AND 77 - CONSTITUTION OF INDIA - ARTICLES 14, 19(1)(F), 25 AND 26 - WAQF - NOTICE ISSUED TO MUTWALLI TO SHOW CAUSE WHY HE SHOULD NOT BE REMOVED FROM MUTWALLISHIP - CHALLENGE - VALIDITY OF SECTIONS OF THE ACT - WHETHER THE PROVISIONS OF THE ACT ARE ULTRA VIRES THE CONSTITUTION - HELD, NO.

Fact of the Case:

The petitioner, who was the mutwalli of certain properties, challenged the validity of the notice issued to him by the Sunni Central Board of Waqf under Section 55 of the U.P. Muslim Waqfs Act, 1960, requiring him to show cause why he should not be removed from the mutwalliship of the properties in dispute. The petitioner contended that the provisions of the Act were ultra vires the Constitution and violated Articles 14, 19(1)(f), 25 and 26 of the Constitution.

Finding of the Court:

The Court held that the provisions of the Act were not ultra vires the Constitution and did not violate Articles 14, 19(1)(f), 25 and 26 of the Constitution. The Court found that the Act was a valid law enacted by the State Legislature under the concurrent list of the Constitution and that the provisions of the Act were not discriminatory or arbitrary. The Court also held that the petitioner, as a mutwalli, did not have any personal rights in the properties in dispute and, therefore, could not raise the grounds of Article 19(1)(f) of the Constitution. The Court further held that the petitioner could not take the aid of Articles 25 and 26 of the Constitution as he was only a mutwalli of the properties in dispute and did not come within the definition of a religious denomination or a section thereof.

Issues: 1. Whether the provisions of the U.P. Muslim Waqfs Act, 1960 are ultra vires the Constitution? 2. Whether the provisions of the Act violate Articles 14, 19(1)(f), 25 and 26 of the Constitution?

Ratio Decidendi: 1. The provisions of the U.P. Muslim Waqfs Act, 1960 are not ultra vires the Constitution. 2. The provisions of the Act do not violate Articles 14, 19(1)(f), 25 and 26 of the Constitution.

Final Decision: The petition was dismissed with costs.

Judgement

ORDER : This is a petition under Article 226 of the Constitution and is directed against a notice dated 27th July 1962 sent to the petitioner by the Secretary of the U.P. Sunni Central Board of Waqf under Section 55 of the U.P. Muslim Waqfs Act, 1960 (hereinafter called the Act). This petition is connected with civil Revision No. 99 of 1962 filed by the petitioner. The petition and the application in revision were argued separately by the learned counsel for the parties and I am, therefore, passing separate orders in respect of them.

2. The facts of the petition, in order, as contained in the petition, are that plot No. 147, house No. 143 and plot No. 148 situated in mohalla Khuldabad, Allahabad originally belonged to Sri Rahim Bux, grand-father of the petitioner. Rahim Bux died in 1913 and left a son Haflz Mohd. Saleem who became the owner of the properties in dispute. On plot No. 149 there is a mosque built by Sri Rahim Bux who had nominated the petitioner as mutwalli thereof. According to the petitioner the shops and the kothris standing on plot No. 148/129 were constructed by the petitioner's father, Hafiz Mohd. Saleem and by Rahim Bux and now the petitioner is the exclusive owner of those properties. On plot No. 146/127 is the residential house or the petitioner which was partly built by the petitioner's father and partly by the petitioner. Plot No. 147/123 lies opposite to the petitioner's residential house and is an open piece of land on which the petitioner has built temporary sheds and has let them out to tenants. The petitioner claims to be the exclusive owner of all these properties except the mosque. House No. 148 comprises of several shops which have been let out to a number of tenants. Two of these shops were let out to one Subhan Bux and two other shops were let out to one Bashir Ahmad. All the tenants including Subhan Bux and Bashir Ahmad regularly paid rent to the petitioner but in 1951 there was a dispute between the petitioner and Subhan Bux regarding the repairs of the house. The petitioner served a notice on Subhan Bux for arrears of rent and his ejectment from the shops. The petitioner also served a notice on Bashir Ahmad who did not pay any rent since 1956. The petitioner filed a suit (suit No. 134 of 1957) for recovery of arrears of rent and ejectment against Bashir Ahmad. The suit was decree on 9th April 1958. The judgment and decree of the trial court were upheld in appeal by the first appellate court and thereupon Sri Bashir Ahmad filed a second appeal in this Court (second appeal No. 533 of 1960, which is still pending.

3. The petitioner filed two other suits (suits Nos. 921 and 922 of 1958) against Subhan Bux for recovery of arrears of rent and for his ejectment. The suits are still pending.

4. It is alleged in the petition that on account of these disputes between the petitioner and the two tenants they made false representations to the U.P. Sunni Central Board of Waqfs (hereinafter called the Board) and got a letter dated 27th November 1956 sent to the petitioner by the Board in which the petitioner was treated as a tenant and in which it was stated that a committee of management was appointed for the waqf Rahim Bux jamadar under Section 50 of the U.P. Muslim Waqf Act (Act No. 13 of 1936) (hereinafter called the Act of 1936) and that one Qadir Ahmad was appointed secretary of the said waqf and he alone was entitled to realise rent of the properties belonging to the waqf. The petitioner replied to the notice dated 27th November 1956 through a counsel, in which it was denied that the petitioner was a tenant of the waqf Rahim Bux. It was also denied that Rahim Bux was the waqf of any property. It was also asserted in the reply that the properties in dispute"have never been subject-matter of any waqf nor the Board has any connection therewith."

5. It is stated in paragraph 14 of the petition that in the suits filed by the petitioner against Subhan Bux and Bashir Ahmad written statements were fil


















































































































































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