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2026 Supreme(Online)(Ker) 35944
IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
Anil K. Narendran, Muralee Krishna S., JJ
Mumthaz K.P. – Appellant
Versus
Kerala State Waqf Board – Respondent
WP(C) NO. 13505 OF 2026
For the Appellants/Petitioners: Manas P Hameed, Ipsita Ojal
For the Respondents: Jamsheed Hafiz
Aggrieved parties must exhaust the statutory remedy before the Waqf Tribunal under Section 83 of the Waqf Act, 1995, before approaching the High Court under Article 226, provided the Tribunal is actively functioning.
Headnote:The case involves a challenge to a scheme framed under S. 69 of the Waqf Act, 1995, specifically regarding the exclusion of women from administrative committees of a religious trust. The petitioners sought a declaration of illegality and a writ for amendment of the scheme. The Court held that when a statutory Tribunal is constituted under S. 83 of the Act and is functioning, the High Court cannot bypass this forum under Art. 226 of the Constitution of India. The core issues were whether grievances against Waqf Board orders must be exhausted through the statutory Tribunal and if the writ jurisdiction is limited when such an alternative remedy exists. Applying the ratio in West Bengal Wakf Board v. Anis Fatma Begum, the Court determined that the legislature intended for all disputes relating to Waqf administration to be adjudicated by the specialized Tribunal to reduce civil court backlog. The writ petition was dismissed on the ground of maintainability without prejudice to the petitioners' right to approach the Waqf Tribunal under S. 83(2) of the Act.
| Table of Content |
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| 1. summary of the petitioners' grievances and reliefs sought regarding administrative discrimination. (Para 4) |
| 2. overview of the statutory framework of the waqf act, 1995, and the governing powers of the waqf board and tribunals. (Para 5 , 6) |
| 3. the requirement to exhaust statutory remedies before the waqf tribunal under section 83 before invoking high court writ jurisdiction. (Para 7 , 8 , 9) |
JUDGMENT
Anil K. Narendran, J.
The petitioners have filed this writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, seeking the following reliefs;
1. Declare that the action of the 1st respondent Kerala State Waqf Board in framing Ext.P1 Scheme under Section 69 of the Waqf Act, 1995 for the Taliparamba Juma-ath Palli Trust Committee, and Ext.P1 Scheme so framed, insofar as it excludes Muslim women from being members of the Jama-ath Committee and from participating in its administration, are illegal, arbitrary and violative of Article 14, 15(1) and 15(2) of the Constitution of India.
2. Issue a writ of certiorari or any other appropriate writ, order or direction calling for the records leading to the issuance of Ext.P1 Scheme framed by the 1st respondent under Section 69 of the Waqf Act, 1995 for the Taliparamba Juma-ath Palli Trust Committee, and quash the same to the extent it excludes Muslim women from being members of the Jama-ath Committee and from participating in its administration.
3. Issue a writ of certiorari or any other appropriate writ setting aside Ext.P3 issued by the 1st respondent.
4. Issue a writ of mandamus or any other appropriate writ, order or direction directing the 1st respondent Kerala State Waqf Board to consider and dispose of Ext.P2 representation submitted by the petitioners seeking amendment of Clause 6 of the Scheme so as to include Muslim women as members of the Jama-ath, within a time frame to be fixed by this Hon’ble Court, without insisting upon any minimum number of applicants for seeking modification or amendment of a Scheme.”
2. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioners and also the learned Standing Counsel for the State Waqf Board for the 1st respondent.
3. The Waqf Act, 1995, which was re-named as the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development Act, 1995, vide Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, is enacted by the Parliament to provide for the better administration of Auqaf and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. Section 32 of the Act deals with the powers and functions of the State Waqf Board. As per sub-section (1) of Section 32 , subject to any rules that may be made under this Act, the general superintendence of all Auqaf in a State shall vest in the Board established or the State; and it shall be the duty of the Board so to exercise its powers under this Act as to ensure that the Auqaf under its superintendence are properly maintained, controlled and administered and the income thereof is duly applied to the objects and for the purposes for which such Auqaf were created or intended. Section 47 of the Act deals with the audit of accounts of Auqaf; Section 63 deals with the power to appoint Mutawallis in certain cases; Section 69 deals with the power of the Board to frame a scheme for the administration of waqf; Section 69 (4) deals with the power of the Board to cancel or modify the scheme; and Section 70 deals with inquiry relating to administration of waqf.
4. Section 83 of the 1995 Act deals with the constitution of Tribunals, etc. As per sub-section (1) of Section 83 , the State Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, constitute as many Tribunals as it may think fit, for the determination of any dispute, question or other matter relating to a waqf or waqf property, eviction of a tenant or determination of rights and obligations of the lessor and the lessee of such property, under the Act and define the local limits and jurisdiction of such Tribunals. As per the proviso to sub-section (1) of Section 83 , any ot
