The Andhra Pradesh High Court ruled that a Mosque Managing Committee can act as a ‘Mutavalli’ and is authorized to lease any Waqf Property for a period of less than one year.
According to the court, Rule 4 of the Wakf Lease Rules allows even a Muthavalli to grant leases of less than one year. Section 3(i) of the Wakf Act defines Muthavalli to include any person, committee, or corporation currently managing or administrating any Wakf property. Since the Managing Committee of the fourth respondent was appointed by the Wakf Board for this purpose, it is deemed to be the Muthavalli of the fourth respondent and has the authority to grant leases shorter than one year.
The Division Bench, comprising Chief Justice Dhiraj Singh Thakur and Justice R. Raghunandan Rao, clarified that authorization given by the Administrator of the Waqf Board should be considered a sanction. They stated that this authorization is essentially a sanction for the managing committee to grant a lease of less than one year, recognizing their intention to do so.
This ruling came in response to a writ appeal filed by leaseholders of Waqf property around the Mohiddinia Masjid, Damaramadugu Village. They contested the decision of the Masjid’s Managing Board to auction the leasehold rights, arguing that only the Wakf Board has the authority to lease out such land.
The Division Bench, after examining the provisions of the Wakf Act, concluded that since the lease was for only 11 months, prior sanction from the Board was not necessary.
Referring to Rule 4 of the Waqf Lease Rules, the bench affirmed that a Mutavalli has the right to lease out Waqf property. Therefore, the Managing Committee of a Mosque can be regarded as its Mutavalli and is empowered to lease Mosque land for less than 11 months without prior sanction.
The appeal was subsequently dismissed.
Case no.: WRIT APPEAL NO: 298 OF 2024
Counsel for the Appellant(s): O. Manohar Reddy, Sr. Counsel on behalf of C Subodh
Counsel for respondents: GP For Social Welfare, MD. Gayasuddin, Sc For Waqf Board, Shaik Rafi, S.M. Subhani, G Suryam
