Hyderabad: Scams and discrepancies in the activities of the Telangana State Wakf Board continue to emerge with Deputy Chief Minister Mohammed Mahmood Ali ordering an inquiry into the irregularities reported at three dargahs in the state.
Mr Syed Omer Jaleel, special secretary of the minorities Welfare Department, will conduct the probe and submit a report to the government.
The inquiry has been ordered following reports that the TS Wakf Board has flouted rules while handing over the hundi collections of the Jahangeer Peeran dargah of Kothur, the Dargah Hazrath Janpahad Shaheed, and the Dargah Arvapally of Suryapet.
According to sources, the Jahangir Peeran dargah earned '1.62 crore in hundi collections and other sources last year, while the Dargah Hazrath Janpahad Shaheed earned Rs 82 lakh. This year, the board nominated some persons to make the hundi collections, and asked them to pay Rs 96 lakh and Rs 20 lakh respectively.
“Discrepancies have been noted in the manner in which contracts were given out. Officials gave the contracts on the basis of nominations, instead of through a tender process. An inquiry will reveal if there were irregularities, and the culprits will be nailed,” said the Deputy Chief Minister.
Mr M.A. Mannan Farooqui, chief executive officer of the Wakf Board, said the contracts for the two dargahs did not include the hundi collections. Mr Mohd Saleem, chairman of the TS Wakf Board, said, “There are court orders against auctioning of the hundi, so we did not include them in the contracts. There are no discrepancies.” Mr Mahmood Ali said contracts would be cancelled if discrepancies were found.
Seniority holds up probe for 4 years
The inquiry ordered by the TS Wakf Board into the irregularities repor-ted in past four years has not yet begun.
The Board had unanimously passed a motion ordering the inquiry into activities from the time of the Board’s dissolution four years ago until the election of a new Board eight months ago.
In the absence of an elected board, its functioning was managed by a special officer. This post was held by Mr Syed Omer Jaleel, special secretary, minorities welfare department, Mr Mohammed Asadullah, a senior official of the revenue department, and Mr M.J. Akbar, of the Indian Forest Service.
The inquiry was ordered over a month ago following complaints regarding irregularities committed in the absence of an elected board. It was to have been conducted by Mr M.A. Mannan Farooqui, chief executive officer the TS Wakf Board.
It has not yet begun because all the three officers are senior to Mr Farooqui. It is learnt that he plans to ask the board to assign the task to some other official.
Deputy Chief Minister Mohammed Mahmood Ali had said recently that the senior officers would not be probed.
Social activist Ather Moin demanded that all officials should be probed. “If they are clean, let them face an inquiry,” he said.
