Meghalaya High Court Junks Petition Challenging Reconstitution Of Meghalaya Waqf Board, Stating Petitioners Lack Locus

The Meghalaya High Court in the case Md. Shahbaz Qureshi & Anr. Vs State Of Meghalaya observed and has dismissed a petition wherein it is challenged the reconstitution of Meghalaya Waqf Board, the court observed that the writ petitioners have no locus standi to put a challenge to the impugned notifications and the writ plea fails and on the question of maintainability itself.
It has been contended by the petitioners that the newly constituted Meghalaya Waqf Board is being violative of the provisions contained in Section 14 of the Waqf Act, 1995, which has been stipulated that the composition of the members of the Board wherein including the Muslim members of Parliament, the Muslim members of State Legislature and the Mutawallis and so on and so forth.
The plea was being raised by the respondent with regards to the maintainability of the petition on the ground that the petitioners have no locus to maintain their claim. The counsel appearing for the respondent submitted before the court that the writ petitioners can in no manner be described as aggrieved persons, inasmuch as, there being no such legal injury has been inflicted upon them.
It has been argued by the petitioner that Section 3(k)(i) and (ii) of Waqf Act gives them the right to assail such kind of actions of the State.
The bench headed by Justice H. S. Thangkhiew in the case observed that petitioners in the plea have made a challenge to the constitution of the Board, but have not demonstrated, or which being brought on record any materials to establish their locus, but by making oral submissions which have placed reliance upon the provisions of the Waqf of Act, 1995 for maintaining the prayer made by them in the writ petition.
Further, it has been stated by the court that the collective perusal of Section 22 and Section 70 of the Waqf Act makes it amply clear that the definition of a “person interested in a waqf”, it cannot be stretched and accepted to mean a person interested in the constitution of the Waqf Board. Accordingly, the court dismissed the plea.