The Hindu Munnani accused the DMK government of incorrectly classifying agricultural land held by Hindus causing them to lose their lands to the Waqf Board.
According to TV Rajesh, the president of Hindu Munnani, Ranipet District, DMK Minister R. Gandhi, along with the district collector, took away the agricultural lands of Hindu farmers without prior notice, despite protests from the affected families.
The alleged incident occurred recently in Veppur village near Arcot Union in Ranipet District near Vellore, which has a Muslim majority.
Hindu Munnani district president TV Rajesh said,”In the 1900s, a land parcel of nearly 57 acres was held by one Wahab and divided among his four wives, who after his death mortgaged it to Hindus and failed to pay the amount they took from them. A case related to this was decided in favour of the Hindus in Chengalpet court, and pattas were issued to them. They had been farming for the last forty or fifty years. This 57-acre parcel of land is now owned by nearly 30 families.”
TV Rajesh added,”Ranipet MLA and Tamil Nadu Minister Gandhi, a District Collector armed with police and revenue officials, descended on the village without following due process of law and issuing notices, only to inform them that the lands are Waqf properties. They have no authority over them. In a video, villagers can be seen pleading with authorities and ministers to reconsider their decision. Some even begged the authorities because it is their sole source of income. Some have even questioned the illegal action, stating that they are prepared to submit documents if permitted, and have requested a meeting with authorities. The words and wailing of the helpless Hindus fall on deaf ears. Another minority appeasement measure”.
Tamilnadu: Agriculture Land belonging to hindu farmers in Ranipet district for hundred of years handed over to Waqf board overnight; locals running from pillar to post.pic.twitter.com/AsAaeF2NVo
— Megh Updates 🚨™ (@MeghUpdates) January 29, 2023
In the above video, the government official says “I don’t know in whose name the lands were till yesterday or day before yesterday. But today the land is under the control of Waqf Board. Since it is under Waqf Board, they’ve asked us to survey the land.”
When the people confront the official ask “Consider the patta has been changed in 3 days. Did you check the names on the patta prior before that?”, the official tries to evade the question.
“How can the name on the patta change in just a matter of 3 days?”, the people ask. They also complain that the RDO has been unreachable.
In a statement released by Hindu Munnani state president Kaadeswara Subramanium, he said,”In Tamil Nadu, there are 53,834 properties owned by 7,452 Waqf Boards, the majority of which are encroached properties or illegally converted by fake documents. Certain Waqf Board properties have titles in the names of third parties. Section 51 (1A) of the Waqf Act, 1995, read with Section 104A, provides that any sale, gift or transfer, mortgage, or change of name of Waqf property is invalid from the start of the transaction.”
He added,”The Waqf Board has the authority to decide whether a property in dispute is a Waqf property or not, according to Section 40 of the Waqf Act. Furthermore, Waqf properties are declared public properties under the Properties (Removal of Unlawful Occupiers) Act of 1975. Registration of the sale of Waqf properties is prohibited under the Registration Act of 1908. The Waqf Board administrators who manage the Waqf Board properties illegally sold and kept it with them without proper documentation.”
He also accused the DMK government of transferring ownership of government-owned and private lands to the Waqf Board in the name of expediting the process of classifying and measuring Waqf Board lands in order to secure Muslim votes.
He further said,” Hindu people are now in danger of losing their own land, which they have owned for generations, due to government misclassification. Regrettably, the Department of Registration does not have complete information on the locations of lands under this Board. This problem affects thousands of families in many districts, including Coimbatore, Tirupur, Trichy, and Vellore.”
He concluded by saying that the Hindu Munnani strongly condemns the DMK government’s transfer of Hindu lands to the Waqf Board and that the registration department should release full data on this to put an end to the issue.
(With inputs from Dinamalar and Organiser)
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