03-18-2005, 12:19 AM
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Mantri wants UP waqf board to control Taj
- By Amita Verma
Lucknow, March 16: The Uttar Pradesh government has laid claim to the control of the Taj Mahal. UP parliamentary affairs minister Mohammed Azam Khan has said the Centreâs control over the Taj Mahal is illegal and the monument should rightly belong to the Waqf Board, which is a part of the state government.
"The Taj Mahal is a grave, and even if it is studded with precious stones, it remains a grave. As per the rules, all graves and graveyards, Idgahs and mosques are under the control of the Waqf Board and the Taj Mahal should be no exception. The Central Sunni Waqf Board is already fighting a battle to gain control of the monument and we fully support their stand," he said.
According to the minister, the Central government is holding on to the Taj Mahal merely because it brings in substantial income. Central Sunni Waqf Board chairman Mohammed Hafiz Usman, meanwhile, told this newspaper on Wednesday that a PIL seeking transfer of the monumentâs ownership to the Waqf Board is already pending in the Allahabad high court.
In January this year, the court directed the Waqf Board to give its opinion on whether the Taj Mahal should be registered as waqf property. "After receiving the court directives, I issued notices to the ASI and the Central government asking them to present their case, but neither has even replied to the notices so far. I have now fixed April 19 as the date for hearing if the ASI and the Central government do not furnish their arguments, I will take the decision ex parte and inform the court accordingly," he said. According to the chairman, any property can be registered with the Waqf Board if the owner so decides. "In the case of the Taj Mahal, Emperor Shahjahanâs will, in the book Badshahnama, clearly says that the Taj Mahal should go to Waqf and the hakim should be appointed as muttawalli (a person entrusted with the management of a religious foundation)," he explains and adds that in this case, the hakim is the Waqf Board (also as per the Waqf Act of 1995).
The board chairman further said that as per norms, the Waqf Board should get a seven per cent share of the annual income from the Taj Mahal while the ASI, even if it continues to oversee the monumentâs maintenance, should give the board details of the spending made from the remaining 93 per cent of the income.
Interestingly, about 25 years ago, Mr Azam Khan had demanded that the ownership of the Taj Mahal should rest with the Waqf Board and he should be appointed the muttawalli.
The revival of the issue by the Samajwadi minister at this juncture clearly indicates that the state government is ready for another confrontation with the Centre and it is the monument of love which will be used this time as a tool in the battle. <!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
- By Amita Verma
Lucknow, March 16: The Uttar Pradesh government has laid claim to the control of the Taj Mahal. UP parliamentary affairs minister Mohammed Azam Khan has said the Centreâs control over the Taj Mahal is illegal and the monument should rightly belong to the Waqf Board, which is a part of the state government.
"The Taj Mahal is a grave, and even if it is studded with precious stones, it remains a grave. As per the rules, all graves and graveyards, Idgahs and mosques are under the control of the Waqf Board and the Taj Mahal should be no exception. The Central Sunni Waqf Board is already fighting a battle to gain control of the monument and we fully support their stand," he said.
According to the minister, the Central government is holding on to the Taj Mahal merely because it brings in substantial income. Central Sunni Waqf Board chairman Mohammed Hafiz Usman, meanwhile, told this newspaper on Wednesday that a PIL seeking transfer of the monumentâs ownership to the Waqf Board is already pending in the Allahabad high court.
In January this year, the court directed the Waqf Board to give its opinion on whether the Taj Mahal should be registered as waqf property. "After receiving the court directives, I issued notices to the ASI and the Central government asking them to present their case, but neither has even replied to the notices so far. I have now fixed April 19 as the date for hearing if the ASI and the Central government do not furnish their arguments, I will take the decision ex parte and inform the court accordingly," he said. According to the chairman, any property can be registered with the Waqf Board if the owner so decides. "In the case of the Taj Mahal, Emperor Shahjahanâs will, in the book Badshahnama, clearly says that the Taj Mahal should go to Waqf and the hakim should be appointed as muttawalli (a person entrusted with the management of a religious foundation)," he explains and adds that in this case, the hakim is the Waqf Board (also as per the Waqf Act of 1995).
The board chairman further said that as per norms, the Waqf Board should get a seven per cent share of the annual income from the Taj Mahal while the ASI, even if it continues to oversee the monumentâs maintenance, should give the board details of the spending made from the remaining 93 per cent of the income.
Interestingly, about 25 years ago, Mr Azam Khan had demanded that the ownership of the Taj Mahal should rest with the Waqf Board and he should be appointed the muttawalli.
The revival of the issue by the Samajwadi minister at this juncture clearly indicates that the state government is ready for another confrontation with the Centre and it is the monument of love which will be used this time as a tool in the battle. <!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->