UP: Waqf Board’s 2018 letter staking claim to 119-yr-old college goes viral

Nawab donated land, says Waqf board

According to Deccan Herald, in the letter dated December 6, 2018, the Waqf Board informed Udai Pratap College authorities that around 100 acres of land on which the institution was situated was Waqf property as it was linked to a mosque currently situated on college premises.

The letter, written by then Waqf Board assistant secretary Aale Ateeq, claimed that the mosque – known as Choti Masjid – and its surrounding land was endowed to the Waqf Board in 1857 by the then Nawab of Tonk.

Also read: Waqf issue: Judicial commission to examine Munambam land dispute

The letter asked college management to reply within 15 days failing which the land will be registered as a Waqf Board property.

Row over mosque repair

The college management, however, had then denied the claims made by Waqf Board, stating that the institution was established in 1909 under the Charitable Endowment Act.

The board reportedly did not send any communication to the college hence after.

Also read: Waqf parliamentary panel set for extension till last day of Budget Session 2025

In 2022, however, a row broke out after the Waqf Board allegedly tried to carry out construction work at the Choti Masjid. Local police intervened after college authorities filed a complaint on the matter.

Security tightened on campus

Reports said, while a small number of people used to offer prayers at the mosque earlier, the numbers swelled on Friday (November 29) after the Waqf Board’s letter went viral, prompting local administration to tighten security around the college campus.

Also read: Waqf committee seeks tenure extension in unanimous decision

Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath visited the college on Monday and said that it would be soon upgraded to a university.