Waqf Board: Appointment of CEO is contrary to Amendment Act Says High Court

Waqf Board | Hyderabad, August 6: The Telangana High Court has issued an interim order directing the state government to restrain Md. Asadullah from continue as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Telangana State Waqf Board, stating that his appointment is prima facie in violation of the Waqf Act, 1995, as amended by the Waqf Amendment Act, 2025.

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Justice Nagesh Bheemapaka, presiding over the writ petition (WP No. 22692 of 2025) filed by Md. Kuthubuddin, passed the order on Tuesday. The petitioner challenged the government’s action of appointing Md. Asadullah, an Additional Collector, as CEO through G.O. Rt. No.54 dated July 2, 2025, and sought his immediate removal.

According to the petitioner, the appointment was made in a “circuitous and illegal” manner, violating Section 23 of the Waqf Act, which mandates that the CEO of the Waqf Board must be a full-time government servant of the rank of Joint Secretary or above.

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Waqf Board: Appointment of CEO

The court, after hearing arguments from senior counsel Vedula Venkata Ramana for the petitioner, the Government Pleader for Social Welfare, and Standing Counsel Farhan Azam Khan for the Waqf Board, noted that the impugned government order appeared to contradict statutory provisions.

“A perusal of the impugned G.O. reveals that the appointment of an Additional Collector in Category-I as CEO is contrary to the Act,” the order stated. “In view of the above, there shall be an interim direction as prayed for,” Justice Bheemapaka ruled.

The petitioner further alleged that Md. Asadullah, who refers to himself as CEO, is continuing to mismanage and mishandle Waqf properties, necessitating urgent intervention by the court.

The High Court listed the matter for further hearing on September 2, 2025, and ordered copies of the interim order to be served to all respondents, including the Principal Secretary of the Minority Welfare Waqf Department, Md. Asadullah and the Telangana State Waqf Board.

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The question that arises in this scenario is that the Congress party has opposed the Waqf Act 2025, and coincidentally, the ruling party in Telangana is also Congress. It remains unclear whether Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy will comply with the High Court’s ruling or choose to appeal the judgment before a higher bench.

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