The Gujarat High Court has ruled that a Waqf Tribunal can decide legal disputes involving Waqf properties but cannot assume the administrative or supervisory powers of the Gujarat State Waqf Board, setting aside a tribunal order in a dispute involving a Waqf trust in Porbandar.
The court also directed the Gujarat State Waqf Board to complete its investigation into the matter within three months under the Waqf Act, 1995, after hearing all affected parties. The ruling was delivered in a case involving the Suryawada Memon Jamat Waqf, where trustees had not been elected since 1996.
According to the report, the Waqf Tribunal in Gandhinagar had issued an order concerning the appointment of an election officer. The High Court held that the tribunal had acted beyond its legal authority and cancelled that order. The matter has been sent back to the Gujarat State Waqf Board for examination under the applicable law.
The court’s ruling draws a distinction between the tribunal’s judicial role and the board’s administrative responsibilities. The tribunal may adjudicate disputes, but it cannot take over functions assigned to the statutory board, even if the board has failed to perform its duties, the court held while relying on orders of the Supreme Court.
The case also concerned earlier directions by the tribunal relating to the physical possession of Waqf properties and documents, as well as criminal proceedings against trustees. The High Court stated that such directions could not be sustained when the tribunal lacked the statutory power to issue them. The court made clear that an intention to protect Waqf properties cannot, by itself, justify the exercise of powers not granted by law.
The decision also criticised the prolonged inaction of the Gujarat State Waqf Board in the Porbandar dispute. The absence of trustee elections since 1996 has left the administration of the trust at the centre of a long-running legal and institutional dispute.
The order places the next responsibility with the Gujarat State Waqf Board, which must investigate the complaints legally, provide affected parties an opportunity to be heard and complete the process within the three-month period set by the High Court. The ruling therefore returns administrative control to the statutory authority while restricting the tribunal to its judicial mandate.
