AHMEDABAD: The Gujarat Excessive Court docket has dominated that Waqf establishments will now be handled on par with different spiritual trusts in authorized proceedings, directing Waqf Boards to pay prescribed courtroom charges in property-related disputes, simply as Hindu and different spiritual trusts are required to do.

The courtroom noticed that no plaintiff is above due means of legislation and that uniform authorized requirements should apply to all spiritual establishments. In its order, the Excessive Court docket clarified that the payment exemption earlier loved by Waqf Boards—owing to ambiguities within the previous Waqf legislation—will not be accessible. 

The directive will apply uniformly throughout the board, from directors of small shrines to operators of huge mosques. 

The ruling is anticipated to have a big influence on the administration of Waqf properties and the conduct of associated litigation, reinforcing the precept of equality in judicial procedures. Throughout India, Waqf properties are managed by state-level Waqf Boards.

Collectively, they management round 9.4 lakh acres of land and almost 8.7 lakh properties, with an estimated worth of Rs 1.2 lakh crore—making the Waqf Board among the many nation’s largest landholders. 

A considerable variety of these properties are embroiled in authorized disputes, usually because of administrative lapses, a context through which the Excessive Court docket’s ruling is more likely to have far-reaching penalties. 

Waqf, derived from the Arabic phrase waquf which means “to carry” or “protect,” refers back to the Islamic observe of donating property for spiritual or charitable functions. 

Such endowments might embrace cash, land, buildings, or different belongings. As soon as devoted, Waqf property—usually described as “property of Allah”—can’t be offered or diverted for non-religious makes use of.

The donor is called a Waqif. The Waqf custom in India dates again to the appearance of Islam, with roots traced to the Delhi Sultanate within the twelfth century. Publish-Independence, the primary Waqf Act was enacted in 1954, adopted by important amendments in 1995 and later in 2013. 

In August 2024, the Union authorities launched a recent Waqf Invoice within the Lok Sabha, triggering nationwide opposition. 

The draft was referred to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), which accepted it with 14 amendments in January 2025. 

The JPC report was tabled in Parliament in February 2025, after which the Cupboard cleared the amended invoice. The laws is now set to be launched for debate and voting in Parliament.