Revenue rights of residents should be protected: Munambam commission

Kochi: The judicial commission headed by Justice (retd) C N Ramachandran Nair, investigating the Munambam Waqf land dispute, may take a stand protecting the revenue rights of the residents of Munambam over their land claimed by the Kerala State Wakf Board. This will be detailed in its report, which will be submitted to the state govt soon. Explaining the commission's stand on the issue on Thursday, Justice Ramachandran Nair told media that relocating the residents of Munambam to another land is not practical and their revenue rights over the land should be protected. The commission completed its inquiry and is expected to submit the report to the state govt by the end of this month.Justice Ramachandran Nair stated that the govt can intervene only if the final decision of the Waqf tribunal favours the state waqf board and leads to a situation where the residents of Munambam are forced to evacuate. "Only if such a situation arises, should the govt step in. I recommend that the govt protect the residents of the land in such circumstances. Negotiations can be held with the Farooq College management and waqf board authorities. If necessary, the govt can acquire the land at Munambam in the public interest and allocate it to the local residents. However, this power should be exercised only as a last resort. It is not practical to evacuate the people currently residing on the disputed land," he said.The state govt appointed the commission in Nov 2024, aiming to find a permanent solution to the dispute. The land dispute in Munambam began when the Kerala State Wakf Board raised a claim saying that the land belonged to the board. In 1950, an individual named Mohammed Siddeeq Sait transferred 404 acres to Farook College. Between 1988 and 1993, the college authorities sold this land at the market value. The disputes related to the property in Munambam arose after the committee led by M A Nissar, appointed by the govt in 2008, submitted its findings. It concluded that the land in Munambam was waqf property, accepting the board's claim. Then, the 404 acres gifted to Farook College were listed as waqf property in the board's asset register in 2019.As part of the investigation, the commission sent notices to landowners in Munambam, the waqf protection council, Kerala State Wakf Board, and the Farook College management, and they produced relevant documents before the commission.