Waqf Board Gets Pittance from MYDW Trust

Hyderabad: Telangana Waqf Board collects nothing but a very small fee as statutory trust fund contribution from prime properties under Mumtaz Yawar-ud-Dowla Wakf (MYDW) Trust, which runs educational institutions and leases properties in prime places like Lakdikapul.

The board is paid only Rs 2 lakh (seven per cent stake) as contribution from MYDW Trust every year; This is an insignificant figure compared to the commercial nature of the properties. Questions are being raised as to whether the trust collects less than Rs.30 lakh annually from the properties it manages at different locations, some of which are in the heart of the city.

This donated land parcel mainly consists of around 30 acres in Malakpet and around 10,000 square meters in Lakdikapul. These were donated to the board by Nawab Mumtaz Yawar ud Daula, a prominent nobleman, educationist and philanthropist, for the purpose of providing better education to the economically weaker sections.

According to official sources, the foundation pays 7 percent of the fund’s annual income to the board of directors, as per norms. “We are getting seven per cent of the revenue of Rs 2 lakh (as per CA’s audit report). Even in this financial year, the board has received this much amount,” Deccan Chronicle’s sources said.

However, the board of directors is not ready to interfere in the foundation’s affairs despite meager contributions.

Sources stated that there is no dispute regarding the nature of the land in question since it is foundation land. However, the board will not interfere with the administration and management of the Foundation. “Nobody denies it (the nature of the property), but it is managed by the Trust. The Wakf board will deal with land matters but will not interfere in the internal affairs of the Trust. Interference takes place only when the custodian of the property goes beyond its jurisdiction. Just like a Governor acts in a state only when the state government fails,” a senior official explained.

In 2014, attempts were made by the then AP State Waqf Board to monitor the activities of the Foundation, but the Supreme Court stayed it. He noted that the board does not have the authority to take any action other than “receiving and recording information”.

Following the alleged murder of senior advocate Khaja Moizuddin, the Board maintained that the legal wrangling between the trustees of the trust was its internal matter. Her secretary position at the foundation was challenged in the courts and had nothing to do with the foundation board. “The victim was never part of the board’s standing counsel and did not fight any case on behalf of the foundation. The legal battle was entirely their own internal matter,” the sources added.