Waqf Board claims pre-Islamic period Temple land owned in Tamil Nadu

Claims rights over the village housing the temple as well

New Delhi – The Union government is planning to impose restrictions on the powers of the Waqf Board. A bill to amend the Waqf Board Act will soon be presented in Parliament. The new bill will regulate the Waqf Board’s power to declare any land as its own property. Numerous cases of misuse of the Waqf Act have emerged in recent years. One such case is from Tamil Nadu, where the Waqf Board has claimed ownership of an entire village.

In Thiruchendurai village, Tiruchirapalli district, Tamil Nadu, the Waqf Board has claimed ownership of the land of the 1,500-year-old Manendiyavalli Chandrasekhar Swami Temple. The temple occupies 369 acres of land in the area. Islam itself emerged only 1,400 years ago.

The claim has shocked farmers and other villagers. According to a local farmer, Rajagopal, the registrar informed him that the Tamil Nadu Waqf Board has sent a 250-page letter to the Sale Deeds department, stating that transactions related to land in Thiruchendurai village should be carried out only with the Board’s no-objection certificate.

Additionally, the Waqf Board has claimed ownership of land in 18 villages in Tamil Nadu. The Board asserts that the government allocated this land to them based on a 1954 survey.

In Jathlana village, Yamunanagar district, Haryana, the land of a gurdwara has been transferred to the Waqf.

The Surat Municipal Corporation headquarters in Gujarat was declared Waqf property. The Board claimed that Emperor Shah Jahan had donated this property as Waqf property to his daughter.

The Sunni Waqf Board even claimed ownership of the Taj Mahal and demanded its declaration as Sunni Waqf property before the Supreme Court. The Court then asked for documents signed by Shah Jahan.