Maharashtra caretaker government cancels Waqf order after criticism
Mumbai: Following widespread criticism from pro-Hindu groups, the Maharashtra caretaker government on Friday withdrew its order to allocate Rs 19 crore to the state Waqf Board. The state government blamed the officials claiming that the order was issued due to an administrative mistake.
The Maharashtra government has issued a Government Order (GR) stating that the Finance and Planning department has approved a Rs 10 crore grant for strengthening the Maharashtra State Board of Waqf (MSBW). The fund was intended to enhance the board’s infrastructure and management.
According to the GR issued on Thursday, Rs 20 crore were earmarked for 2024-25 for strengthening of the MSBW. Of that, Rs 2 crore were already disbursed to the board.
However, the decision evoked strong objection from the pro-Hindu groups who accused the state government of appeasing a particular religious community. Saying that this will not be tolerated, Mohan Salekar, VHP’s Konkan region secretary, warned that if the decision was not reversed, the ruling coalition would face backlash from the Hindu community in upcoming elections.
Salekar said, “Mahayuti government is doing what even the Congress government did not do. The government is appeasing the religious community. If this decision is not withdrawn, then Mahayuti parties will have to face the wrath of Hindus in the upcoming elections of local bodies and assembly.”
The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena criticized the move, calling it a politically motivated attempt to consolidate minority votes. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Priyanka Chaturvedi called it as ‘hypocrisy’ and questioned the caretaker government’s authority to make such policy decisions.
Chief Secretary Sujita Saunik clarified that the government resolution was issued inadvertently without proper scrutiny, leading to the erroneous approval of funds for the board.
BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis, in a post on X, said, “The Chief Secretary has immediately withdrawn the order as the manner in which the administration issued the GR regarding the allocation of funds to the Waqf Board was not appropriate. The justification and law will be examined as soon as the new government comes to power in the state.”
Maharashtra BJP spokesperson Keshav Upadhyay questioned the decision of the allocation, saying that a caretaker govt does not have the authority. He said, “At present there is a caretaker government in Maharashtra and this government does not have the authority to take policy decisions. It seems that the decision regarding the fund has been taken at the administrative level, so it is expected that the administration will amend its decision.”