Registration to be must for Masjids, Dargahs

Mangalore, August 27: A recent circular issued by the Karnataka State Wakf Board seeks to make registration of mosques, dargahs, and other Islamic religious institutions mandatory.

However, serious questions were raised on the efficacy of such an order when the board itself was plagued with problems ranging from shortage of staff to lax implementation of the Wakf Act (1995) and Karnataka Wakf Rules (1997) to even linguistically faulty audit forms.

At present, 631 institutions had registered themselves in Dakshina Kannada. These total to 1,375 properties estimated at Rs. 533 crore or translating to around 1,600 acres of land, said Wakf officials.

Understaffed

The board has the responsibility of auditing each institution. In the case of misappropriation or undemocratic functioning of the administrative committee, the board could even take over the institution. Wakf officials had to sanction grants for maintenance, funds for construction of Shadi Mahals and low-interest loans for developing mosque properties.

However, for all these responsibilities, just three people worked at the District Wakf office here. The Wakf officer had been transferred two months ago and a replacement was yet to be appointed. Only one permanent waakf official is posted, while two other clerical posts had been filled on contract system. This hampered on-the-field visits to verify information given by the institute committee, said sources at the board.

English notices

Moreover, in a candid admission of folly, an official said Wakf Board sends auditing forms (Form 50) and subsequent notices to the masjids in English. “Most mosques have committee members who do not read English. Because of this, they ignore the notices and fill the form improperly,” said the official. Although the audit form should be sent by May 1, on an average, only 15 institutions end up sending their accounts before the deadline, said the official.

According to the official, only around Rs. 7 lakh had been collected last year as tax. This came up to a paltry Rs. 1,110 per institution registered.

Unregistered institutions

While, the circular was yet to reach the board office here, an official said compulsory registration might see additional properties registered to increase by only around 200.