Only 2.16 lakh Waqf properties out of a total of 8 lakh have been registered on UMEED website, data has revealed as Waqf Board officials prepare to approach tribunals after the deadline for the process ended Saturday.
A total of 10,872 registration applications were rejected out of 5.17 lakh submitted on the website. At 52,917, Karnataka managed to register the highest number of properties (81%), followed by Jammu & Kashmir with 25,046 (77%), Punjab with 24,969 (90%), and Gujarat with 24,133 (61%), according to data from the portal.
The worst-performing state was West Bengal with registration of just 716 properties being completed out of 80,480 (0.89%) in the state. For months, the TMC government in the state had refused to implement the Waqf (Amendment) Act before issuing directions last week to upload information regarding such properties on the UMEED portal.
Uttar Pradesh has managed just 789 registrations (5%) for the Shia Waqf Board while Sunni Waqf Board saw 12,982 (11%) registrations. Apart from Bihar, UP is the only state that has separate Waqf Boards for the two sects.
Maharashtra has seen registration of 17,971 properties out of 36,700 (48%).
The UMEED (Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development) portal was launched by the Centre on June 6 under provisions of the contested Waqf (Amendment) Act, with the objective of bringing all Waqf properties under a centralised digital database, with geo tagging and documentation. The government has said this will ensure that the properties are managed and protected better and in a transparent manner. The deadline for registration of properties ended on Saturday night.
The Indian Express had last week reported that Waqf Boards and mutawallis (caretakers) of the properties were facing issues such as the portal crashing, difficulty in finding documents and papers regarding centuries-old properties, and different measurements used for land in different states, among others.
On Friday, Union Minister for Minority Affairs Kiren Rijiju had said that there would be no penalty for three months for those who failed to register, adding they could approach the Waqf Tribunals in their respective states. The tribunals have the power to grant an extension.
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Waqf Board officials said they would start submitting applications to Waqf Tribunals in their states, seeking an extension for uploading documents and registering properties on the portal. “The tribunals in states where registrations are low will face a flurry of applications seeking extensions for the process,” said an official in the UP Sunni Central Waqf Board.
The registration on the UMEED portal was a three-step process with the first being undertaken by mutawallis (caretaker) of properties, while the second was undertaken by Waqf Board officials, and the final and third one being done by Waqf Board CEOs.
There are a total of 8.8 lakh Waqf properties in the country. At 2.4 lakh, Uttar Pradesh has the most Waqf assets across its Sunni and Shia board followed by West Bengal (80,480), Punjab (75,511), Tamil Nadu (66,092), and Karnataka (65,242).
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