The Madras High Court has ruled that a mosque in Tirunelveli district is entitled to just 2.34 acres of land as waqf property, rejecting its claim over 1,100 acres. The ruling is based on a copper plate inscription from 1712, which recorded a grant by the then ruler of Madurai Samasthanam.
Justice M. Dhandapani delivered the order while partly allowing a civil revision petition filed by the Tamil Nadu government in 2018. The petition challenged a decree passed in favour of the Muthawalli of Kanmiya Pallivasal (mosque) at Kandiyaperi by the Waqf Tribunal (Tirunelveli Principal Sub Court) on 18 August 2016.
The judge heard detailed arguments from senior counsel V. Raghavachari for the Tamil Nadu Waqf Board and amicus curiae Chevanan Mohan. The State, represented by Additional Advocate General (AAG) Veera Kathiravan, argued that the mosque was not entitled to any piece of land. The AAG submitted that all the survey numbers listed by the mosque in its 2011 civil suit before the Waqf Tribunal had already been notified in 1966 under the provisions of the Tamil Nadu Inam (Abolition & Conversion into Ryotwari) Act of 1963. According to the government, the properties had been declared ryotwari lands, excluding the right of the Waqf, and several parcels had been allotted to the landless poor. It was also pointed out that 362 persons were cultivating the lands on the basis of assignment pattas.
Rejecting this contention, Justice Dhandapani observed that “once a property had been declared waqf, it would remain so.” He said the 1712 grant in favour of the mosque could not be doubted since the Telugu inscription on the copper plate had been transcribed in 1925. The inscription stated that it was a “Sarva Manyam for Masjid Dharmam” and that “it will carry on from son to grandson so long as the sun and moon last.”
The court noted that the tax-free grant given by the Madurai Samasthanam ruler had also been recorded in the Inam Fair Register of 1865 and 1866. The mosque’s entitlement to the grant had further been affirmed by the Tinnevelly Subordinate Court on 8 March 1955, and that decree had attained finality since the State, though a party, did not appeal.
However, when determining the extent of land, Justice Dhandapani pointed out that the copper plate inscription referred only to 75 kottahs. He explained that “a Google search would show that each kottah/katah would be equivalent to only 0.03124 acre.” Accordingly, the mosque was held entitled to only 2.34 acres and “nothing more.” The judge directed the Tamil Nadu Waqf Board to identify the specific piece of land on the basis of the description and boundaries mentioned in the copper plate inscription.
The court also noted that the Survey and Boundaries Act came into force only in 1923, and before that survey numbers were not in use. “In such circumstances, the mosque had failed to explain how it had claimed right over a host of survey numbers relating to a vast extent of 1,100 acres,” the judge observed.
Concluding the verdict, Justice Dhandapani said: “This court places on record its appreciation for the assistance rendered by the learned amicus Mr. Chevanan Mohan for the enlightening this court with the erudite exposition of the legal position on the subject, thereby enabling this court to render its opinion on all the facets of law relating to the issue on hand.”
(With inputs from The Hindu)
Subscribe to our channels on Telegram, WhatsApp, and Instagram and get the best stories of the day delivered to you personally.
