Lucknow: The Yogi Adityanath government has removed six of the ten Shia Waqf board members who were nominated by the previous Akhilesh Yadav government, official sources today said. On June 15, the state government has dissolved Shia and Sunni waqf boards and recommended a CBI probe into the corruption by them. "We have issued notices to both the chairpersons of the Shia and Sunni Boards and action would be taken against them soon," the sources said.
The UP government was also taking legal opinion before sacking the chairpersons of both the waqf Boards. The sacked members are: former Rajya Sabha member Akhtar Hussain Rizvi, Sayeed Wali Haider, Ashafa Zaidi, Sayeed Azim Hussain Zaidi, Alima Zaidi and special secretary in the state government Nazmul Hasan Rizvi. All the sacked members were also said to be close to former UP minister Mohammad Azam Khan.
However, Mr Khan has charged the Yogi government with targeting the opposition with such move. "This move of the UP government to dissolve the waqf Boards is against the constitution as Waqf boards are formed after a law by Parliament," Mr Khan claimed. However, Shia Waqf Board chairman Wasim Rizvi alleged that the state government was working in haste and the move was to protect its corrupt minister Mohsin Raza against whom the Board had lodged an FIR for corruption in a waqf case of Unnao. " If the government moves for the dissolution of the Board, then I have no other option but to move the court against the arbitrary attitude of the government," he further said.
Meanwhile Shia and Sunni clerics have welcomed the state government’s decision of dissolving the Waqf boards of both communities and a probe by the CBI. The clerics said the dissolution and probe will help in breaking the ice-like grip of the mafia backed by some political parties on the huge assets of Waqf boards, running into thousands of crores of rupees. (UNI)
