The Crossbill News Desk
A revenue court in Sambhal has ordered the eviction of two brothers, including an imam, from a plot of village land and imposed a penalty of Rs 6.94 crore for alleged encroachment and construction of permanent structures on the property.
The order was passed by a tehsildar court after examining revenue records and a report submitted by local officials.
According to officials, the dispute concerns a 0.1340-hectare plot located in Saif Khan Sarai village that is recorded in official records as property belonging to the Gram Sabha. A report submitted by the area lekhpal (revenue official) alleged that the land had been occupied without authorisation for decades, The Indian Express reported.
The report stated that Aftab Hussain, the imam of the local Jama Masjid, had constructed permanent structures on the land around two decades ago. These included a residential house as well as a mosque and a dargah on the disputed plot.
“After hearing both parties, the court passed an order directing the respondents to vacate the land, which is recorded in revenue records as gram sabha property,” said Sambhal Tehsildar Dhirendra Singh.
Officials said the family’s possession of the land was found to date back to 1972. On that basis, the court calculated the financial penalty using the applicable circle rate for the area over the period during which the occupation existed.
Singh said the Rs 6.94-crore penalty was determined on the basis of the applicable circle rate of the area, calculated from 1972, the period from which their possession over the land was found to exist. The proceedings for eviction from the land and recovery of the imposed penalty will be initiated soon, the Tehsildar added.
The case began after the lekhpal’s report prompted revenue authorities to initiate formal proceedings. A notice was issued to Aftab Hussain on June 24 last year seeking his response to the allegations.
During the hearing, a reply was submitted stating that Aftab Hussain and his brother Mehtab Hussain were acting jointly as mutawallis, or caretakers, of the religious structures located on the site.
The brothers argued that the mosque and the shrine were registered as waqf properties with the Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board and had long been recognised as such. They also informed the court that an annual Urs, a religious congregation, is organised at the shrine every year.
According to the submission, their father Khursheed Hussain had earlier served as the mutawalli of the site before them.
Revenue authorities have said that steps will now be taken to enforce the court’s order, including initiating eviction proceedings and recovering the penalty amount in accordance with legal provisions.
The order was passed by a tehsildar court after examining revenue records and a report submitted by local officials.
According to officials, the dispute concerns a 0.1340-hectare plot located in Saif Khan Sarai village that is recorded in official records as property belonging to the Gram Sabha. A report submitted by the area lekhpal (revenue official) alleged that the land had been occupied without authorisation for decades, The Indian Express reported.
The report stated that Aftab Hussain, the imam of the local Jama Masjid, had constructed permanent structures on the land around two decades ago. These included a residential house as well as a mosque and a dargah on the disputed plot.
“After hearing both parties, the court passed an order directing the respondents to vacate the land, which is recorded in revenue records as gram sabha property,” said Sambhal Tehsildar Dhirendra Singh.
Officials said the family’s possession of the land was found to date back to 1972. On that basis, the court calculated the financial penalty using the applicable circle rate for the area over the period during which the occupation existed.
Singh said the Rs 6.94-crore penalty was determined on the basis of the applicable circle rate of the area, calculated from 1972, the period from which their possession over the land was found to exist. The proceedings for eviction from the land and recovery of the imposed penalty will be initiated soon, the Tehsildar added.
The case began after the lekhpal’s report prompted revenue authorities to initiate formal proceedings. A notice was issued to Aftab Hussain on June 24 last year seeking his response to the allegations.
During the hearing, a reply was submitted stating that Aftab Hussain and his brother Mehtab Hussain were acting jointly as mutawallis, or caretakers, of the religious structures located on the site.
The brothers argued that the mosque and the shrine were registered as waqf properties with the Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board and had long been recognised as such. They also informed the court that an annual Urs, a religious congregation, is organised at the shrine every year.
According to the submission, their father Khursheed Hussain had earlier served as the mutawalli of the site before them.
Revenue authorities have said that steps will now be taken to enforce the court’s order, including initiating eviction proceedings and recovering the penalty amount in accordance with legal provisions.
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