Manilonda wakf land case: Andhra Pradesh State Wakf Board keeps its options open after AP High Court verdict

Syed Akbar
Hyderabad, April 3: With the AP High Court’s verdict in Lanco Hills
case going in its favour, the State Wakf Board has decided to pursue
other long-pending cases by hiring specialist lawyers.

About 1660 acres of prime Wakf land is under encroachment in different
parts of the State. The Board has identified 1200 encroachers and
decided to intensify its legal efforts to reclaim its land. The market
value of the Wakf lands under illegal occupation is about Rs 30,000
crore.

Wakf Board chairman Syed Ghulam Afzal Biyabani (Khusro Pasha) told
reporters here on Tuesday that the High Court’s judgment had
vindicated the stand of the Wakf Board. “We have been claiming that
the land belongs to the Board. The court order has proved us correct.
The government had sold away the property claiming it as its own when
the Board was under its direct management. After the Board was
constituted, we started pursuing the case,” he said.

Asked about the next course of action with regard to Lanco Hills case,
Khusro Pasha said the Board would hold a meeting and decide whether to
acquire the land, seek compensation or give the land on lease.

The Board is now likely to vigorously pursue the cases of encroachment
of 98 acres of Wakf land in Guttala Begumpet and 35 acres of land
under the occupation of a religious educational institution in the city.