Hours before the deadline to register Waqf properties on the Centre’s UMEED portal ended, Union Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju announced that no penalty would be imposed for the next three months. He said mutawallis who could not complete the process should approach their state Waqf Tribunals, which have the power to grant an extension.
The Indian Express had earlier reported that in four of the five states with the largest Waqf land banks, only a fraction of properties had been uploaded on the portal. Waqf boards and mutawallis have been struggling with frequent portal crashes, difficulty in locating documents for centuries-old properties, and inconsistent land-measurement practices across states.
Rijiju said that after the Waqf Amendment Act was passed, the Centre launched the UMEED portal with a mandatory six-month registration period. “Today is the last date, and lakhs of Waqf properties have not been registered,” he told reporters in Delhi. He said several MPs and community leaders had told him about challenges in uploading details of nearly nine lakh Waqf properties.
According to the minister, 1.51 lakh properties have been registered so far. States such as Karnataka and Punjab have done better, while many larger states are far behind. Rijiju said he had been informed about the portal running slow and the lack of documents in many cases.
“In view of these requests, we will not take harsh steps for three months. There will be no penalty. Those who have been unable to register should go to the tribunal. The Supreme Court has said that there will be no extension, but the tribunals have the power to give six more months if there are valid reasons,” he said.
When asked about mutawallis who still do not have papers, Rijiju said tribunals would decide such cases. “If a property is Waqf, it must have documents. The law has been brought to ensure efficient management and to prevent misuse. Waqf properties must be used for the poor and backward,” he added.
The UMEED portal was launched to create a central digital database of all Waqf assets, with geo-tagging and documentation. The government says this will improve transparency and protection of these properties. India has an estimated 8.8 lakh Waqf assets. Uttar Pradesh alone has more than 1.4 lakh properties under its Sunni and Shia boards. After UP, West Bengal, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka have the highest number of Waqf properties.
Later in the day, Rijiju reiterated that the Centre would offer “maximum relief” within the limits of the law. He said Parliament had passed the Act, and the government could not change it. The Supreme Court has already refused to extend the six-month deadline and told applicants to seek relief from the Waqf Tribunals.
