Kochi: Prominent Christian organizations, including the Syro-Malabar Church and the Kerala Catholic Bishop Council (KCBC), have reached out to the Joint Parliamentary Committee regarding the Waqf (Amendment) Bill 2024. Their concerns stem from a land dispute affecting around 610 families in Cherai, a fishing village in Kochi, Kerala, who fear eviction due to alleged claims by the Waqf Board on their properties.
Sharing letters addressed to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on social media, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju assured the organizations that their grievances would be addressed. "The issue of Waqf land has been affecting people across communities. I feel pained to see eminent Christian leaders having to express their anguish in this manner. I assure them that their grievances will be addressed," Rijiju wrote on September 28, expressing confidence in the JPC.
In their submissions, both the Syro-Malabar Church and the KCBC highlighted the issue of Christian families in Cherai and Munambam areas of Ernakulam district facing illegal claims on their properties by the Waqf Board.
On September 10, Archbishop Andrews Thazath, chairman of the Syro-Malabar Public Affairs Commission, stated in a letter to the JPC that several properties in Ernakulam district, historically belonging to Christian families, have been unlawfully claimed by the Waqf Board, leading to legal disputes and potential displacement of rightful owners. He pointed out that nearly 600 families are at risk of losing their properties due to these claims.
The Archbishop urged the JPC to consider the plight of these families and others across the country who face the threat of losing their homes because of the Waqf Board's illegal claims. Similarly, Cardinal Baselios Cleemis, President of the KCBC, raised alarms about the Waqf Board's claims on properties of over 600 families in Munambam Beach, Ernakulam.
What Is The Dispute?
The village in Kerala is grappling with a severe crisis as the 610 families fear eviction stemming from a land dispute with the Waqf Board. The villagers, primarily fishermen, have resided there for over a century. According to their account, the land was purchased by Siddique Sait in 1902 and later donated to Feroke College in 1950. A long-standing dispute between the fishermen and the college was resolved in 1975, with the High Court ruling in favor of the college. Locals began purchasing land from the college starting in 1989.
However, in 2022, the village office unexpectedly claimed that the land belonged to the Waqf Board, denying the villagers' revenue rights and obstructing their ability to sell or mortgage their properties.
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