SC deletes Kerala HC direction placing Waqf Board under government supervision

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday removed a Kerala High Court direction that had placed the Kerala State Waqf Board under the supervision of the state government's Joint Secretary/Additional Secretary. 

The order came on a plea filed by the Kerala State Waqf Board challenging the Kerala High Court's order restraining it from taking major policy decisions over absence of 2 non-Muslim members. The Apex Court, meanwhile, asked the High Court to expeditiously decide the case.

A Bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul Pancholi modified the High Court's order. "The direction that the Board shall function under the supervision of the Joint Secretary/Additional Secretary of the government is hereby deleted. The Joint Secretary/Additional Secretary, being a member of the Board, shall continue to function in that capacity," the Bench said.

Noting that the matter is listed before the Kerala High Court on Wednesday, the Supreme Court directed the High Court to dispose of the case expeditiously after giving all parties an opportunity to file their claims and counter-claims.

During the hearing, senior advocate Jaideep Gupta, appearing for the Kerala government, argued that the High Court's order was only an interim arrangement and did not warrant interference by the Supreme Court. The Bench, however, orally questioned why the Board should be prevented from functioning because of the dispute.

Senior advocate V Chidambaresh, appearing for the Waqf Board, contended that the interim order had been passed without hearing the Board. Senior advocate Huzefa Ahmadi, also appearing for the Board, submitted that the Board's nine members were appointed through a notification issued on February 14 for a five-year term. He alleged that attempts were being made to replace them and argued that the only issue raised before the High Court was the absence of non-Muslim members.

The Kerala High Court had passed the interim order while hearing PILs challenging the constitution of the State Waqf Board. The Division Bench of Chief Justice Soumen Sen and Justice Syam Kumar V M had observed that the Board was prima facie not constituted in accordance with Section 14 of the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development Act, 1995, as amended in 2025, because it lacked two non-Muslim members and one Shia member as required under the amended law.

The High Court had, therefore, restrained the Board from taking major policy decisions until the matter is decided.

(With LiveLaw inputs)