HC declines to stay waqf board poll, but outcome subject to final verdict

Vijayawada: The Andhra Pradesh high court on Friday declined to stay the election process to select a member to the waqf board.The high court, however, said that the election will be subject to the outcome of the pending writ petitions.Three writ petitions have been filed before the high court challenging the electoral rolls of mutavallis for the election of a member to the waqf board.The petitioners contended that the publication of voter list was not done in accordance with the procedure contemplated in the Waqf Act. Senior counsels Vedula Venkata Ramana and Chidambaram argued that voters’ list should be publicised, and sufficient time should be given to raise grievances. They contended that the election was called for without following the due procedure.Advocate general S Sriram and senior counsel P Veera Reddy argued on behalf of the state government and the Waqf Board respectively. They told the high court that the list of voters was displayed in the respective offices and objections have been received on the voter lists. Everything was done in accordance with law and the petitions are not maintainable as they cannot be filed after the election process was set in motion. Any grievances over election should be raised before the Waqf Tribunal before moving the high court, they have argued.Considering the arguments on both sides, Justice B Krishna Mohan declined to stay the election. However, Justice Krishna Mohan said that the election of Waqf Board member will be subject to the final outcome of the petitions.
Stay updated with the latest news on Times of India. Don't miss daily games like Crossword, Sudoku, and Mini Crossword.