State waqf tribunal stays part of road construction

November 16, 2013

Niraj Chinchkhede, TNN |

AURANGABAD: The state waqf tribunal on Thursday directed the Aurangabad Municipal Corporation ( AMC) to maintain status quo on a part of road construction work between Little Flower School and Cantonment Idgah campus.

The waqf board had approached the tribunal seeking the civic body to temporarily restrain from doing any sort of construction work in the waqf suit property at survey number 6, 7/2, 8 and 31 in Old Qutubpura, Jaisingpura (Cantonment).

In its petition, the Idgah and Kabrstan Committee claimed that the civic body had commenced the work without taking a no-objection certificate from the owners of the land – the waqf board. Abdul Hameed Khan, secretary of Idgah and Kabrstan Committee, the land was reserved for a graveyard. “However, the municipal body had encroached the front portion of the land measuring 600 ft X 15 ft, thereby violating the norms. The market value of the encroached land is in crores and the civic body should compensate the owners before taking its possession,” he said.

Khan said he had raised objection over the construction work in 2008. “At that time, the municipal body had promised that it would measure the actual length of the land coming in way of road widening and offer compensation for the same. However, the civic body has now started the work without even giving any compensation,” he said.

After conducting survey of the site, the Idgah and Kabrstan Committee members and a group of Muslim community people said the work of periphery wall of the graveyard was not being done abutting the road. “The authorities have pushed it about 15 feet inside the graveyard to widen the road. But there are number of graves in the 15-feet area. While doing excavation, the municipal body is also digging skeletons which is highly objectionable,” Khan said.

The municipal corporation had recently started construction work of the road with an investment of Rs 12.5 crore. After allotting the tender to a contractor, it took the civic body six months to actually start construction work on the development plan road connecting Town Hall and Little Flower School.

Contending that there is substance in the application, the tribunal also issued a show-cause notice to the municipal body.

The civic body officials refused to comment on the issue.

Source-http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com