Real estate boom in Ayodhya ignites concerns over encroachment of Waqf properties

Muslim cemeteries, Idgahs, and mosques are seeing land grab with a boom in real estate in the temple town, claim members of the statutory body

Getting ready for opening: Construction workers busy giving final touches to the Ram temple in Ayodhya on Friday. | Photo Credit: AFP

Mohammad Azam Qadri has written over a dozen letters over the last couple of years, to the Uttar Pradesh administration and the police, alleging encroachment on Waqf properties. “Encroachment has been taking place on Muslim cemeteries, Idgahs (open spaces for prayer), and mosques. I have written letters to the district authorities for protection of Waqf properties, but our representation is not taken seriously,” said Mr. Qadri, who is the president of the Sunni Central Waqf Board sub-committee, Ayodhya.

He said more than 3,000 square feet of an Idgah and cemetery near Saket Degree College has been encroached upon, one of the 10 properties affected over the past three years.

He attributes the encroachment to the land mafia’s sudden interest in Ayodhya, with the city’s real estate boom, after the Supreme Court’s 2019 verdict that paved the way for the building of the Ram temple which will be consecrated on January 22.

Statutory bodies

The State Waqf Boards are statutory bodies entrusted with the custody of Islamic endowment properties used for charitable or religious purposes. There are 1,62,229 Waqf properties in Uttar Pradesh, including 1,50,000 registered with the Sunni Central Waqf Board and 12,229 with the Shia Central Waqf Board. There are more than 100 mosques and 185 cemeteries across Ayodhya district.

Zufar Farooqui, chairperson of the U.P. Sunni Central Waqf Board, said, “Encroachment-related disputes on properties under the custody of the Waqf are across the State, and the administrative authorities have been informed.”

The Ayodhya district administration said necessary action is taken whenever information about encroachments is received.

“In 2021, the Principal Secretary (Home) issued directions to constitute a district-level task force to remove such encroachments. We take necessary action as and when a petition or application is received about illegal grabbing of Waqf properties. We forward the petition, including Mr. Qadri’s or others, to the Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) concerned for inquiry and action as per law,” said Amit Pratap Singh, Minority Welfare Officer, Ayodhya.

‘No concrete steps’

However, Mr. Qadri said the task force headed by the District Magistrate, of which he himself is a part, has not been able to take any concrete steps to push back on encroachments.

While Muslims in Ayodhya have accepted the changes in the city, Mr. Qadri said they are still fearful. “The local administration has given us a guarantee that no unrest will take place, but on December 6, 1992, the U.P. CM Kalyan Singh also assured the Supreme Court that the 16th century [Babri] mosque will be protected.”

There are roughly 5,000 Muslims residing in a four-km radius of the temple. In Ayodhya district, 14.8% of nearly 25 lakh inhabitants are Muslims.

Amid the influx of devotees ahead of the temple opening, Ayodhya is also witnessing the opening of many new restaurants, mostly vegetarian, many bearing Ram’s name.

With the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath advocating for a ban on consumption of meat and liquor in “dharamnagri”, Mr. Qadri added Muslims have adjusted in the last 30-odd years to the changing realities of the temple town. The suggestion does not rattle them. “There are no meat shops in the vicinity of the temple. These shops are located at least 4 km away,” said Iqbal Ansari, son of the late Hashim Ansari, the oldest litigant in the Babri Masjid-Ram Janmabhoomi case.