The homes and futures of 238 landowners of a 46.4 acre plot on Katraj-Kondhwa Road are hanging by a thread. Resurrecting a battle that has been going on for over 20 years, the Central Waqf Council (CWC) has written to the Minorities Development Department, asking that this plot be restored to its rightful owner — the Waqf Board. The CWC wrote to the principal secretary of the Minorities Development Department on November 2. An inquiry has been initiated and a report is awaited from the Pune regional Waqf officer.The issue has been going on since 1996, when the then members of the Alamgir Masjid Trust appealed in court, asking that it be declared an inam (grant or gift). Their plea was rejected, with the court pointing out that there were numerous unanswered questions pertaining to the land. The trustees were asked to file a suit in the appropriate court, which they never did.About seven months ago, social activist Salim Mulla, under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, claimed to have accessed documents that showed the spot as having Kondhwa’s first mosque.This, he said, meant that the land belonged to the board and the 238 buyers are illegal.Mulla had realised at the beginning of the year that the first ever mosque of Kondhwa was built on this land. Digging a little deeper, he learned that in 2006, the charity commissioner had transferred the 46.4 acres to the Waqf Board. However, even today, there were several private constructions on this land and it was divided among 238 owners. “Once I received all the documents under the RTI Act, it showed that the land belonged to the board from the start as it was a devasthan. However, the earlier trustees had sold the land to about 238 people and that since it was a nonsaleable land, this was clearly an illegal process,” he insisted.Following the innumerable letters that Mulla wrote to various authorities, the CWC decided to initiate an inquiry. They then wrote a letter to the Minorities Development Department and asked for them to do the needful.Mulla also proposed that the land be used to build a technical skills university for minority communities and that the land needed to be handed over to the Waqf Board quickly so that this work could begin.For those living here, this means that even if they believe they have legally owned pieces of this land for years, they will now again have to prove that they are the rightful owners.For the last two decades, 80-yearold Vedprakash Taneja, a retired army colonel and a cardiologist, has been fighting for his right to live peacefully on a piece of land that he bought in 1990. After building a farmhouse here, he has been embroiled in a never-ending battle with the Waqf Council. He is determined to win this time and prove that he was not wrong in securing the property in the first place, neither is he wrong now for holding onto it.“I gave up all my land in Haryana and used my savings to procure this land. I had all the land documents scanned from legal advisors before I invested my money. We paid the entire amount and it was a great relief to finally have land in the city where I could build my own farmhouse. I thought the battle was at an end a few years ago, but now I’m on my guard again. I challenge anyone to prove how the land belongs to the Waqf Board. I guarantee that I can prove them wrong,” said Taneja.He added that he believes the Trust has no authenticity and certainly no power to take away the land.Following the letter that CWC sent, Taneja, too, was asked to submit his side and the required documents on November 17.Robin Bhatnagar, who is also in his 80s and runs a real estate firm, bought land here in the ’90s. Sharing a similar story, he said, “In the numerous hearings that have occurred on this issue since 1996, all the courts have dismissed appeals from the trustees and the Waqf Board, and asked them to appeal to the appropriate court. However, 20 years later, they have still not done this. I am willing to give up my property if it is proved that it belongs to the board as long as I get my money back for the area that I own, according to the current market rate.”When Mirror got in touch with Sandesh Tadvi, who has the additional charge as CEO of the Waqf Board, he said, “An inquiry has been initiated and we are awaiting a report from the Pune regional officer, Atiq Khan, on the matter. We will be able to say more only after we get the report.”█ We paid the entire amount and it was a great relief to finally have land in the city. I challenge anyone to prove that the land belongs to the Waqf Board