A total of 1,669 properties across four tehsils have been identified in the three-month-long survey of the Waqf Board concluded in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. The district administration has surveyed all the properties and sent the report to the government which will be subsequently tabled before the Joint Parliamentary Committee for further action.
Sadar Tehsil accounts for 914 properties under the Sunni Waqf Board and 34 under the Shia Waqf Board. Additionally, Ghatampur Tehsil has 189 Waqf properties, Bilhaur has 388, and Narwal has 144.
Among these, around 548 properties are government-owned. Mosques and cemeteries have been built on them. The Revenue Department does not have complete records of these properties.
A week ago, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had spoken about reclaiming land from those occupying Waqf properties. Following this, the administration began a survey of Waqf properties as per government instructions.
However, a similar survey of properties had also been conducted in 2021 on the orders of the government. The matter had settled down due to opposition. Now, the administration has identified 548 government properties, covering an area of 89 hectares. Sadar Tehsil has the highest number of properties belonging to the Sunni Waqf Board. Several properties around the Parade area are also Waqf Board properties.
These properties include Eidgahs, mosques, cemeteries, Muslim orphanages, and more. The land values in areas where the Waqf Board owns properties are the highest.
The properties under Sunni Waqf include the Muslim Orphanage, Khairat Ali Mosque in Nawabganj, a property in Neel Wali Gali, Waqf Mosque at Parade, Khalwa Cemetery, the Tomb and Shrine on Parvati Bagla Road, Fazal Hussain’s Hata in Fazalganj, and Sheikh Abdul Rahim’s property in Anwarganj.
The Shia Waqf properties include Nawab Bahadur’s property in Gwaltoli, Hadi Begum and Sardar Begum’s properties in Colonelganj, and Waqf Haji Mohammad Ali Khan’s property in Suterganj, Gwaltoli.
