Maharashtra government today stated in the Legislative Council that it will appoint honest and competent prosecutors to handle the cases related to Waqf Board lands.
Speaking on the calling-attention motion of Congress's Husna Banu Khalife, Shiv Sena MLC Neelam Gorhe said the public prosecutors appointed by the government sometimes get compromised as the opposite party influences them.
"There is a need for competent and sincere prosecutors for Waqf board issues as in the past the government has lost cases because it was not properly represented in courts. Prosecutors are often managed by opposite parties," she said.
In response, minister of state for social justice Dilip Kamble said the government will ensure that competent prosecutors handle these cases, and will review earlier cases related to the Waqf Board lands across the state.
The lands will be freed of encroachment and possession will be restored to the Waqf Board, he assured.
Khalife also raised the issue of 653-acre land at Kelshi in Ratnagiri district. "In June 2015 it was revealed that the entire land, except one acre, has been encroached upon. The government should take action to remove encroachment," she said and added that the land had historic, religious and tourism-related significance as it was granted by King Shivaji to the Yakub Shah Baba Dargah.
Bhai Jagtap, another Congress MLC, supported her and said the government should provide police protection to the land and deal with encroachment problem in a sensitive way.
The minister assured that the government will take all the necessary measures with regard to Kelshi land, and will also remove encroachment from all dargahs and burial grounds.
