Mutawalli removed from Dargah responsibilities

HYDERABAD: Hafeez Pasha, 52, the mutawalli (caretaker) of the Hazrath Sayyad Khaja Nayabe Rasool dargah at  Rehmatabad in Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh, who is wanted in a rape and Pocso Act case registered with the Langer Houz police in Hyderabad, has been removed from responsibilities. The AP Wakf Board took over the dargah under its direct management.

AP Wakf Board chairman V. Khader Basha said that since Hafeez Pasha was facing allegations of sexual assault and a police case, the board had taken a unanimous decision to remove him. “Henceforth, the dargah will function under the Wakf Board directly,” he said.

It was learnt that Pasha was absconding and special teams were on the job to nab him. Sources confirmed that when the case was registered against him on February 10, he was admitted to the hospital due to a heart-related ailment. At that time he faced cheating and sexual harassment charges.

The case was altered later to one of rape and Pocso Act violations after the victim’s statements were recorded. By then, he had got discharged and fled the city. Police registered a case on a complaint from an engineering student, 18, for cheating under the pretext of marrying her.

Police said he had allegedly trapped her when she approached him seeking help regarding some issues she was facing. Making her and her parents believe that she was possessed by evil spirits, Pasha kept her in confinement and performed black magic on her, her parents claimed. Pasha had married four women in the past, police found.