SIMI friend loses job as seminary caretaker
THE STATE Government on Friday night overruled the controversial decision of the Sunni Central Waqf Board to appoint a prominent SIMI friend as caretaker/manager of the city’s oldest and biggest seminary.
Only a few days back, Hindustan Times had exposed the Sunni Central Waqf Board’s appointment of Mohd Ismail Syed Shareef as the new ‘mohtammim’ and ‘mutawalli’ of the Jaam-e-Uloom Madarsa and trust. In a bid to play safe on the issue, the government stayed the order passed by Sunni Central Waqf Board chairman Hafiz Mohd Usman on Friday night.
In its order, the Department for Minorities and Waqfs observed that the Board chairman’s order to appoint Syed Shareef was one-sided. It further stated that the appointment had created a rift in the management, which prompted the government to overrule the decision under Section 97 (I) of the Waqfs Act.
Minorities and Waqfs secretary Dr Nand Lal has sent a copy of the order to the district magistrate for necessary action.
In fact, the issue had left the government red faced after Shareef’s dubious distinction of being a SIMI financer was revealed. Even the local administration was baffled with local intelligence reports piling up pressure on the issue. The reports had underlined the role some officials on key posts had played in the entire affair.
{{/usCountry}}In fact, the issue had left the government red faced after Shareef’s dubious distinction of being a SIMI financer was revealed. Even the local administration was baffled with local intelligence reports piling up pressure on the issue. The reports had underlined the role some officials on key posts had played in the entire affair.
{{/usCountry}}What saved the day for the government was Hafiz Usman’s order. Pointing to the gray areas in the order, the government decided to stay it.
First, Usman appointed Shareef on the basis of an affidavit, in which the latter claimed to have the support of the ‘shoora’. However, there was no mention of the ‘shoora’ members who had endorsed his move. Interestingly, Usman never entertained the application of the elected ‘shoora’ for the last year or so.
Moreover, Usman didn’t follow the standard procedure of obtaining a character verification certificate. Above all, in line with a recent high court order, the chairman’s order should be backed by two third members and the chief executive officer (CEO). However, in this case, the order was passed unilaterally, without verifying the facts. All these gave reasons enough to the government to overrule it. Sources said, the entire ‘shoora’, that Shareef as ‘mohtammim’ of the 124-year-old institution had constituted, became defunct. Now, the old ‘shoora’ reigns.