KOCHI: The Kerala High Court has quashed a case against two former officials of the Department of Posts, Kozhikode Division, based on a complaint filed by the Waqf Board.
The complaint alleged that the officials illegally took possession of Waqf property without obtaining prior sanction from the Board.
Justice PV Kunhikrishnan, delivering the order on a petition filed by K Sukumaran and K Prema, stated that the Department of Posts had occupied the property prior to the insertion of Section 52A in the Waqf Act.
The court noted that the Post Office had been functioning on the property since 1999, while Section 52A, which mandates prior sanction from the Waqf Board to take possession of Waqf property, was only introduced in 2013. Consequently, the court ruled that prosecution against the petitioners was "unsustainable."
K Sukumaran, Senior Superintendent, and K Prema, Sub Post Master of Kozhikode Division in 2018, had filed a petition seeking to quash the case after the Judicial First Class Magistrate issued a summons.
The summons was based on allegations that they committed offences under Section 52A of the Waqf Act, which states: "Whoever alienates or purchases or takes possession of, either permanently or temporarily, without prior sanction of the board shall be punishable with rigorous imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years."
Advocate Suvin R Menon, representing the petitioners, argued that since the Post Office had taken possession of the property prior to the 2013 amendment, the requirements of Section 52A did not apply to his clients.
