Kerala Waqf Board says it was ‘forced’ to upload Munambam data after Farook College’s stand

The Kerala Waqf Board has maintained that the refusal of managing committee of Farook College, Kozhikode, the mutawalli (manager) of Munambam holding and others to upload the property details to the central portal forced to post the data as mandated by law.

However, those in the managing committee defended the decision not to post the data by stating that Munambam was not a Waqf property and hence the information was not uploaded on the portal, thus adding a new twist to the raging controversy.

The uploading of the property details on the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency, and Development (UMEED) portal set up by the Union Ministry of Minority Affairs for the registration, real-time verification, and monitoring of Waqf properties had run into a controversy with a section of the Church, the residents of Munambam and Chief Minister V. D. Satheesan objecting to it. Mr. Satheesan and the action council of the residents blamed the Board for the recent flare-up.

Mr. Satheesan, who had earlier claimed that he would resolve the issue “in 10 minutes” of assuming power, criticised the developments as a malicious act of the LDF government carried out during the fag end of its term to trouble the new government. He also alleged that the acts of the Board, which was appointed by the LDF government, was a politically motivated one.

Incidentally, litigations are being fought in different courts, including the Supreme Court, over the nature of the holding following the suo motu registration of the property as a Waqf by the Board in 2019 by invoking the provisions of the Waqf Act. This led to the residents challenging the decision before the Waqf Tribunal.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court stayed the decision of a Division Bench of the Kerala High Court which declared that the Munambam holding was not a Waqf property on an appeal filed by the Board and an agency campaigning for the restoration of the alienated Waqf holdings. The dispute had earlier threatened to grow into a social and communal issue in the State, with various stakeholders and political parties taking sides.

Board’s stand

Board sources said notices were issued to all the mutawallis, including that of the Munambam, on October 18, 2025 and 21 November 2025 asking them to upload the relevant details as mandated by the Waqf (Amendment) Act 2025. Advertisements and press releases were issued asking the mutawallies to comply with the central rule. Training programmes were also organised to facilitate the uploading of data.

The Board was forced to upload the details of around 200 Waqf properties, including Munambam, as its mutawallies failed to comply with the instructions. The details of the litigations pending before various courts regarding Waqf properties, including Munambam, were also uploaded as required by law, the sources said.

The Board officials said details of nearly 85% of the Waqfs in the State have been provided. The uploading of data of Waqf from Thiruvananthapuram to Thrissur has been completed. The details of the Waqf in northern districts need to be posted, sources said.

Farook College’s position

Meanwhile, sources in the Farook College managing committee defended the decision not to upload the data by stating that the holding was not a Waqf and hence was out of the purview of the Act.

The committee had been consistently maintaining that the Munambam land was not a Waqf and there was no need to furnish the data. However, the details of Waqf properties, which are managed by the committee, were uploaded on the portal, a committee member said.