Munambam Waqf Land Dispute: HC Stays Order Quashing Kerala Govt’s Inquiry Commission

KOCHI:
Three weeks after the Pinarayi Vijayan government suffered a jolt when the Kerala High Court allowed the petition challenging the appointment of an Inquiry Commission to find a permanent solution to a dispute between the Munambam residents and the Waqf Board, on Monday a division bench stayed that order.

With this, the Justice C.N. Ramachandran Nair Commission appointed by CM Vijayan to examine the rights of around 600 families facing eviction after a property at Munambam was declared to be a Waqf will be able to proceed with his job.

The dispute concerns land in Munambam, which originally measured 404.76 acres but has been reduced to around 135.11 acres due to sea erosion.

The division bench on Monday said, “the appeals are admitted. List the appeals for hearing on the daily board from June 16, 2025. During the pendency of these appeals, the operation and implementation of the judgment dated March 17, 2025, is stayed. The report submitted by the Commission will not be acted upon by the State government without seeking leave of this court in view of these appeals,” the court said in its order.

The issue dates back to 1950 when the now disputed land was gifted to the Farook College by one Siddique Sait. However, the land was already home to several people, who continued occupying the land, leading to legal battles between the college and the long-time occupants. Later, the college sold portions of the land to these occupants.

These land sales failed to mention that the property was Waqf land. In 2019, the Kerala Waqf Board formally registered the land as its property, making the earlier sales void.

This triggered opposition from residents who faced eviction. An appeal challenging the State Waqf Board’s decision to classify the Munambam land as its property was filed before a Waqf Tribunal in Kozhikode.

It was the members of the Waqf Samrakshana Samithi who argued that the government had no power to inquire into Waqf properties outside the statute and wanted the Nair Commission to be disbanded.

The petition will now be heard in detail on June 16.