Shia Board polls: Waseem Rizvi seeks membership

Ayodhya: The controversial former chairman of Shia Central Waqf Board, Waseem Rizvi, who faces corruption charges and was ostracized by Muslims after he moved Supreme Court to seek removal of some Quranic verses, is seeking re-election as member of the Board from the mutawali quota. The crucial elections to the Shia Board is scheduled for Tuesday.

Waseem Rizvi’s name figures in the list of candidates from the mutawali quota in the notification (dated April 17, 2021) issued by special secretary to UP government and election officer for Shia Waqf Board, Ashok Kumar.

After Syed Zafar Rizvi withdrew his nomination on Sunday, six candidates are now in the fray, said CEO, Shia Waqf Board, Naseer Hasan. Along with Rizvi, others in the list include Ashfaq Hussain Zia from Faizabad, Syed Musharraf Hussain Rizvi from Unnao, Syed Mujahid Hussain Naqvi from Barabanki, Syed Asim Rizvi and Syed Faizi (both from Lucknow). The Shia Board, which is scheduled to be constituted on April 20 through an electoral process, will have majority nominated members.

Only two members will be elected from mutawalli quota. As there are no Shia sitting parliamentarians from Uttar Pradesh, former MPs will become eligible to be members from MP quota.

Three former Congress MPs Begum Noor Bano, Akhtar Hussain Rizvi and Syed Sibte Razi, minister for minorities affairs Mohsin Raza and BJP MLC Buqqal Nawab are in the fray for membership from MP/MLA quota. Likewise, since there are no Shia MLAs from Uttar Pradesh, sitting MLCs will fill up the MLA/MLC quota. Mohsin Raza and Buqqal Nawab both are BJP MLCs.

Talking to TOI, chief executive officer of Shia Waqf Board Naseer Hasan said, “If there are no eligible candidates from the prescribed categories, the state government can nominate to complete the quorum. It can nominate any former MP or former MLA of Shia community to complete MP/MLA categories and nominate Shia lawyers to complete the quorum in the absence of a Shia member from the Bar Council.” UP minister for minorities affairs Mohsin Raza, said, “we will create a clean, non-controversial waqf board. The Board coffers are empty and we will try to mobilise resources and work for the community’s welfare.”


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