Delhi HC grants time to Centre to clear its stand on Delhi Waqf plea

New Delhi [India], September 29 : The Delhi High Court on Tuesday granted more time to the Centre to clear its stand on the Delhi Waqf Board plea seeking direction to the government to preserve the original shape, form and use of all the waqf properties situated in or around the Central Vista Redevelopment Project.
Centre Government's counsel sought more time from the Delhi High Court to seek instruction on the Delhi Waqf Board plea.
A single-judge bench of Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva listed the matter for further hearing on October 12.
Delhi Waqf Board has urged Delhi High Court to issue direction to the Centre to preserve the original shape, form and use of all the waqf properties situated in or around the Central Vista Redevelopment Project.
Senior Advocate Sanjoy Ghose was appearing for Delhi Waqf Board.
The petition filed by Delhi Waqf Board through lawyer Wajeeh Shafiq urged the Court to issue a direction to the respondent to preserve the original shape, form and use of all the waqf properties situated in or around the Central Vista Redevelopment Project or other projects allied to it, along with the easements attached to those properties.
The petitioner, Delhi Waqf Board, which is a Statutory Body incorporated under Section 13 of the Waqf Act, 1995 and invested under Section 32 of the said Act with the powers and duties to manage and control the Waqf Properties situated in NCT of Delhi, invokes the Writ Jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution of India.
The petitioner said that Waqf Properties, which are old and important places of worship and are likely to be impacted by the ongoing Central Vista Redevelopment Project.
The petitioner is conscious that Central Vista Redevelopment Project was cleared by a Supreme Court order, in which the top court held that the project was a project of National Importance.
As a matter of abundant caution, the petitioner seeks to leave to clarify that the petitioner is not in any manner seeking any order or direction against the respondent in respect of continuation of the Central Vista Project and does not in any manner seek to delay or obstruct the same. The petition is instituted with a limited objective to ensure that the religious or waqf properties, which are also of historical importance, the subject matter of the present petition are preserved and protected in the redevelopment process.
The petition said that it may not be out of place to state that the petitioner is constrained to file the present petition only on account of the fact that the several representations made by it seeking clarification and assurances from the respondent have gone unheard and without any response.