Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Sept 17: Chair-person of Waqf Development Committee and Member Central Waqf Council of Union Ministry of Minority Affairs, Dr Darakhshan Andrabi completed her first leg of tour to the important shrines under J&K Waqf Board on the instructions of the Central Ministry to assess and inspect the state of affairs, management, funds utilization and development of shrines in J&K.
Dr Andrabi visited some important shrines in South and North Kashmir in the first phase of her visit. “I will continue my visits again after I submit the report of the first phase to the Central Ministry today evening at Delhi. I visited some important shrines in Anantnag, Baramulla and Kupwara districts; met common people, administrators, employees, beneficiaries and others to assess the situation. I was very much disturbed to see the shabby, poor condition at shrines”, Dr Andrabi said in a statement.
“Basic facilities are nowhere and the Nazrana received at these shrines worth crores of rupees annually goes to the houses of some self-selected claimants. This is the autonomy which was protected by our political exploiters for seventy years,” said Dr Darakhshan. She came on heavily on the J&K Waqf management saying that the body has failed to come up to the expectations of the people in managing the properties and assets related to our great sufis and spiritual personalities.
She said that it was very sad to see the assets and properties of Waqf worth crores of rupees either encroached, or left in very disastrous conditions throughout the State. “We need to fix the persons involved in destroying, misusing and looting our religious public properties. I will fight to the last to see that this body is restructured from the core. Those who allowed the Waqf Board to work as a unit of the political parties of the rulers in the past have to see the bad days soon. It is shameful on the part of all of us that we have allowed our spiritual centers to be disrespected this way. With the help of the general public, we hope to redefine the working of this management body soon and I am hopeful that the Lt Governor Manoj Sinha will initiate the process soon keeping in view the public sentiment of the Muslim community of J&K,” said Dr Andrabi.
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