Mumbai: A dispute is brewing in the Cutchi Memon community over alleged illegal transfers of properties owned by the Zakaria Masjid, one of the important mosques in central Mumbai. Former trustees of the mosque have accused the current management of surrendering trust properties to builders against the community's interests.
Former chairman of the trust, Rizwan Coatwala, has alleged that the Bazarwala Building on Zakaria Masjid Street, a four-storey block of tenements and shops owned by the masjid, was transferred to a builder without a no-objection certificate from the Maharashtra State Board of Waqf, which administers Muslim religious endowments.
Cutchi Memons, also spelled as Kutchi Memons, a Sunni Muslim community from Gujarat and Sindh, established the Zakaria Masjid around 200 years ago. The mosque on Masjid Bandar Road owns around eight buildings in the city, excluding the mosque building, which also has shops on the lower floors rented out.
The income from these properties is used to manage the mosque and other religious institutions. The buildings are rented out under 'pagdi' rules, where a tenancy holder can sell the rights to a third party after paying a transfer fee, ranging from 20 to 33% of the sale proceeds, to the property's owner.
"This transfer fee is used to maintain the mosque and other community services because rents from the properties are too low. The transfer fee is the trust's main source of income. The transfer of tenancy has to be approved by the Waqf Board. In the case of the Bazarwala Building, the property was transferred to a builder in 2014 for redevelopment without a no-objection certificate from the Waqf Board," said Coatwala.
The trust decided to sell the development rights of the dilapidated Bazarwala Building after a resolution was passed in August 2010. A builder responded to a public notice and agreed to buy the building's development rights for a fee of Rs 1.5 crores. As additional compensation, the trust was promised seven flats of 300 square feet in the new building and a madrassa. The project is yet to be completed for various reasons.
Meanwhile, amendments to the law in 2013 made it compulsory for trusts to get approvals from the Waqf Board for the transfer. In 2020, the Waqf Board sent a notice to the trust, asking them to explain the property's transfer without their permission. Faiyaz Pathan, Waqf Board officer, said that hearings in the case were currently in progress. "We have not issued any order," said Pathan
Mohammed Irshad Lakdawala, a current trustee of Zakaria Masjid, agreed that the Waqf Board's approval was not taken before the transfer of the Bazarwala Building.
"We followed the procedure followed in the past when no-objection certificates were not taken. The community will benefit from the deal with builders, as we need the money to maintain our mosque. We do not take donations," said Lakdawala, who added that Coatwala was spreading misinformation in the community. "Coatwala himself sold a property when he was a trustee."
Coatwala denied any wrongdoing. "I contend that our ancestors created these properties to provide a steady income for maintaining our religious places. The trust has received only a part of the compensation promised in the agreement. There is a provision in the Waqf law to retrieve a property lost in an illegal transaction. The property should be restored to the community," said Coatwala.
