No end in sight to Chamarajpet Idgah dispute

The Karnataka State Board of Auqaf on Wednesday regretted the “misunderstandings” about the Chamarajpet Idgah Maidan’s “unambiguous” status as a gazetted wakf property.

The board once again referred to the 1964 Supreme Court judgement that had dismissed the then City Corporation of Bangalore’s claim over the two-acre, 10-gunta land.

The issue has surfaced with the BBMP asserting that the Idgah is a playground and some pro-Hindu outfits asking for its permission to hold various programmes there.

Also Read: Chamarajpet Idgah: Puzzling BBMP stand on a ‘settled’ case

Speaking to DH, the board’s CEO Khan Parvez said the judgement was “full and final”, disagreeing with BBMP Chief Commissioner Tushar Girinath that it is “not very clear”.

Asked about the BBMP boss’ claim that a page was missing from the order copy they had received, Khan said it was the civic body’s duty to trace and find it out.

On old city survey records that apparently show the Idgah as a BBMP property, Khan said the board didn’t handle those records.

He, however, acknowledged that some ambiguity has crept in about the whole issue and wished the civic authorities had checked with the board before proclaiming the Idgah as a BBMP property.

Meanwhile, a copy of the minutes of a meeting held on September 19, 2006, has surfaced. Some suggested that the meeting had resolved to allow the ground to be used for functions like Dasara, Shivarathri, Ganesh Chaturthi, Kannada Rajyotsava and sports activities, among other things.

The meeting was called by the assistant commissioner of police (Chamarajpet) and was attended by then minister B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan, former MLAs Pramila Nesargi and R V Devaraj, and then Deputy Commissioner of Police (South) Alok Kumar, among others.

The meeting unanimously agreed to authorise Zameer, Nesargi and Devaraj to decide on four matters, including allowing the ground to be used for Dasara and other festivals.

While Zameer could not be reached for comment, Dr Zahiruddin Ahmed, general secretary of the Central Muslim Association (CMA), which is the caretaker of the Idgah Maidan, explained what had happened at the meeting. He was in attendance. He denied that the CMA’s then-president Maqbool Ahmed had given his consent to the ground’s use for other purposes.

They had only agreed to appoint the three-member panel and authorise it to decide on those four matters, he added.