Sunni Waqf Board stakes claims toportion of 115-yr-old Kashi college

Varanasi: While govt plans to discuss the Waqf (amendment) Bill in the winter session of Parliament, a controversy erupted after a six-year-old notice from the UP Sunni Central Waqf Board claimed ownership of a mosque and its land on the campus of the 115-year-old Udai Pratap College in Varanasi, the parliamentary constituency of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.However, the college authorities dismissed the claim, stating that the college is run by a trust, negating anyone's ownership rights to it.Meanwhile, a police force was deployed on the college campus on Friday to prevent any untoward incident. The situation is calm and peaceful in the locality. "The notice in question is from 2018 and the college administration responded with evidence. A meeting was held with students and the college administration. The students denied any such intention and also assured that no unpleasant incident would occur on the campus," said the additional deputy commissioner of police (ADCP), Varuna zone, T Sarvanan.Principal of Udai Pratap College DK Singh said that the UP Sunni Central Waqf Board, Lucknow, sent a notice to the college on Dec 6, 2018 and the college responded to it on December 21, 2018. In its response, the then secretary also sent a reply stating that this land belongs to the Endowment Trust. The land can neither be bought nor sold and if there is any kind of ownership right, then it ends. He said that after giving the reply, no further correspondence was done by the board."In the meantime, they wanted to get some construction work done in a mosque on which we took action and got the construction material removed with the help of the police," he said, adding that in 2022, the police were also informed that no construction work can be done. The electricity of the shrine was also cut because electricity was stolen from the college itself and used to light the shrine. He said that this is the act of an undesirable element who is claiming this land to be the land of the UP Sunni Central Waqf Board."UP College Chhoti Masjid is the property of Nawab Tonk," said Munawar Siraj, a member of the mosque committee. He denied that the Waqf Board claimed the entire land of UP College. "Only a small portion where the mosque is situated is the Waqf property, where locals used to offer namaz peacefully even today," he said, adding that there is no objection imposed by the college administration in offering prayer.Rajarshi Udai Pratap Singh Judev founded the 'Hewett Kshatriya High School' in Varanasi in 1909, which later developed into Udai Pratap Singh Autonomous College. Recently, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath took part in the foundation day function of the college.