Keralam Waqf Board reconstitution: Govt to examine all aspects before decision, says Minister

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Keralam Waqf Minister N. Samsudheen | Photo Credit: THE HINDU

Keralam Waqf Minister N. Samsudheen on Monday (September 28, 2026) said the State government would examine all aspects, including legal issues pending before courts, before deciding on reconstituting the Waqf Board.

He clarified that no decision has been taken so far to dissolve or reconstitute the existing board.

Mr. Samsudheen was responding to reports that the State government has decided to dissolve the Kerala State Waqf Board.

“No such decision has been taken. All of you are aware of the Waqf Board issue. A case related to this is currently pending before the Kerala High Court. During the hearing of the case, the court observed that under the existing law, the government has the authority to reconstitute the Waqf Board,” he told reporters.

However, the case has not been disposed of and arguments were still ongoing, he said.

Asked whether the government would reconstitute the board, Mr. Samsudheen said no specific decision has been taken in recent days.

“We will examine all aspects. Currently, two or three cases related to this are pending. So, in that situation, the government can make a decision on a matter only after examining all aspects,” he said.

The Minister also said the government is monitoring cases pending before the Supreme Court relating to amendments to the Waqf Act.

“So, we are observing all of this. After observing, we will move forward accordingly. We have taken no such decision in recent days,” he said.

Mr. Samsudheen also referred to a case before the High Court challenging nominations made by the previous government to the Waqf Board.

“We also feel that it was not proper, because the people who were supposed to be appointed under each quota were not the ones designated under those quotas,” he said.

Mr. Samsudheen, who is also the General Education Minister, said the government would not implement the minimum subject-mark requirement for SSLC and higher classes this year and would review the previous government’s decision.

“That was a decision taken by the previous government. Their decision was to implement it in SSLC this academic year. So, we need to examine that once again. After all, it’s a reform. It is an issue that affects tens of thousands of children. So we will not implement it this year,” he said.

The General Education Department has temporarily frozen the 30% subject minimum mark requirement in written examinations for SSLC and upper classes for the current academic year.

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