Management of Waqf Estates in Bangladesh Towards a Sustainable Policy Formulation – Md. Mokhter Ahmad & Md. Safiullah
Abstract:
‘Waqf’ is an important Islamic institution. It is one of the greatest sources of charity devoted for the overall development of the Muslim society. Traditionally it has been playing a significant role for the nourishing & flourishing of various religious, educational, economic, social, and cultural dimensions of Islam. In this way ‘Waqf’ emerged as a vital institution in the Muslim society serving the purpose of maintaining various Islamic and social organizations as well as assisting poor individuals of the society leading to a significant reduction of poverty. Its origin dates back to the time of Prophet (peace be upon him) who himself practiced it and, upon his promotion, a number of his companions followed him in this noble task. The first instance of ‘waqf’ in Islam is the establishment of the ‘Masjid al-Qubā’ near Madīnah followed secondly & subsequently by ‘Al- Masjid al-Nababī’, built by the prophet (peace be upon him) himself. Quite enthusiastically this tradition has thus been overwhelmingly undertaken by almost every Muslim country albeit with slight variations in the system of management, organization and administration. Though initially there was no set & clear-cut methodology and/or rule to govern the waqf properties, but with the emergence of huge waqf properties alongwith their concomitant complicacies the traditional Sharīah scholars of Islam felt the need to formulate specified rules and methodologies to regulate their management, organization, and administration which latter on resulted in voluminous books, treatises and write-ups. Despite this, the Muslim countries the world-over are following heterogeneous rules for the management of waqf properties. Bangladesh is no exception in this regard. According to a survey conducted by the Bureau of Statistics of the Government of Bangladesh, total number of ‘Waqf’ estates in Bangladesh is 1,50,593 including 1400 estates around different ‘mazars’. According to 1983 Mosque census, out of about two hundred thousand mosques 123,006 are ‘waqf’ properties. It is also claimed that almost one third lands of Dhaka city is waqf properties. Though the government of the then Pakistan promulgated an ordinance titled as ‘The Waqfs Ordinance, 1962’ (East Pakistan) which was latter on amended by the then government of Bangladesh in 1972, the laws therein are rather obscure, ineffective and have nothing effectively deterrent to check the corruptions of the Mutawallis and officers. It becomes immediately evident from the fact that although staggering number of 1,50,593 mosques out of about two hundred thousand are maintained by waqf properties, only 15,300 are registered with the ‘Waqf’ Administration of the Government. Thus this is the need of the time for Bangladesh to formulate a law based on an admixture of clear cut traditional waqf rules and modern management tools for the sake of better management, organization, and administration of waqf properties in Bangladesh.