N.A. Haris, Congress MLA representing Shantinagar constituency in Bangalore, on Thursday said that the State Government was the biggest encroacher of Wakf Board properties and claimed that allegations against him and his family members about involvement in acquisition of wakf properties were false.
Addressing presspersons here, Mr. Haris said that a report on illegal encroachment of wakf properties by Karnataka State Minorities Commission Chairman Anwar Manippady was politically motivated.
“The biggest encroacher of wakf properties is the government and semi-government agencies in the State.” The Government had illegally acquired wakf properties and spread over 652 acres at Hegde Nagar in Bangalore and allotted sites under the Ashraya scheme. The matter was before the court now. Wakf properties had been encroached upon by various governments in the past and there was nothing new about it, he said.
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The report, which was submitted to the government, said wakf properties worth about Rs. 2 lakh crore — of the total properties worth over Rs. 4 lakh crore — had been encroached upon or sold illegally.
Defamation case
The MLA has decided to file a defamation case against the commission chairman for dragging his and family members into unwarranted controversy and sullying the image in the society. “I could not lay my hands on the report yet, but the legal action initiated will be strong and appropriate enough to counter the gravity of allegations made against me and my family members after examining the contents of the report,” Mr. Haris added.