NEW DELHI: Delhi Wakf Board will soon get 123 properties including many in prime localities such as Janpath, Babar Road, Mathura Road, Pandara Road, Ashoka Road and Parliament Street following a decision by the Union cabinet. The properties include mosques, dargahs and graveyards.

At present, about 60 of these properties are owned by the land and development office (L&DO) of Union urban development ministry. The rest are with the Delhi Development Authority (DDA). The minority affairs ministry had set up a committee of experts under the Central Wakf Council to evaluate the proposal. The expert committee backed the proposal.

But after Sunday’s cabinet decision, all these properties spread across Delhi will now come under the control of the Delhi Wakf Board. However, it cannot sell them as Wakf Act forbids sales or transfers of the Wakf land to anyone.

While presiding over 60th meeting of the Central Wakf Council in September 2012, then minority affairs minister Salman Khurshid had said the issue related to the handing over of these 123 properties in Delhi would soon be resolved.

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